Wanda Sykes Teams Up With Stand Up To Cancer And The Safeway Foundation To Launch New Campaign To Raise Funds And Awareness In The Battle Against Breast Cancer

LOS ANGELES and NEW YORK, Sept. 30, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), The Safeway Foundation and actress and comedian Wanda Sykes have collaborated on a campaign to raise money and public awareness for a cause that is important to all women — breast cancer awareness and treatment.  The PSA campaign launches on October 1, the start of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The campaign, scheduled to run the entire month of October, will coincide with Safeway's annual in-store Breast Cancer Awareness fundraiser, which offers customers multiple opportunities to donate at more than 1,300 Safeway stores across the U.S. Through the fundraiser and a new public service announcement (PSA) featuring Sykes, a SU2C Ambassador, SU2C and The Safeway Foundation will encourage the public to support vital research to help find a cure for breast cancer. 

The print, radio, digital and out-of-home PSA, entitled "Our mother. Our daughters. Our best friends.", is designed to increase funds and awareness toward the fight against breast cancer, which is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths among women in the U.S. One in eight U.S. women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.

"As a breast cancer survivor, I am honored to join Stand Up To Cancer and The Safeway Foundation in this critical initiative," said Emmy Award-nominated comedian and actress Sykes. "Together we hope to raise funds and create awareness toward cancer research to help find more effective ways to treat the disease that has affected not only my life, but the lives of our mothers, daughters, sisters and friends."  

At the center of the fundraising and public awareness campaign is a limited-edition, breast cancer awareness-themed reusable tote. The bag will be available for purchase at all Safeway locations, including Vons, Pavilions, Tom Thumb, Randalls, and Carrs stores, as well as online at SafewayFoundation.org. Proceeds will benefit accelerated breast cancer research. Additionally, Safeway shoppers can make a separate donation at checkout stands.

"We are proud to continue our longstanding commitment to fund research and, ultimately, cure for cancer," said Larree Renda, Safeway Inc. Executive Vice President and Chair of The Safeway Foundation. "We are thrilled to work with Stand Up To Cancer and Wanda Sykes, two amazing partners who have worked tirelessly to bring awareness to this important cause."

The collaborative campaign represents a continued dedication to breast cancer research and awareness for The Safeway Foundation and Stand Up To Cancer. To date, Safeway and The Safeway Foundation have raised over $115 million for breast cancer causes. Stand Up To Cancer continues to make significant strides in breast cancer research. The SU2C Breast Cancer Dream Team, led by Dennis Slamon, M.D., Ph.D., and Joe Gray, Ph.D., is working to develop more effective, less toxic treatments for the three major breast cancer subtypes: estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, HER2- positive, and triple negative. The team is also addressing cancer cells' ability to become resistant to therapies that are initially effective, which is one of the key obstacles to successful treatment. Understanding this resistance opens the door to developing new therapeutic agents to overcome this critical problem.

"We are grateful to The Safeway Foundation for their continued commitment to Stand Up To Cancer and to Wanda Sykes for participating in this campaign," said Lisa Paulsen, co-founder of Stand Up To Cancer and CEO of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF). "As a breast cancer survivor, Wanda is a powerful and inspirational voice."

To learn more, visit www.standup2cancer.org or www.SafewayFoundation.org. To join the conversation, like us on Facebook at @StandUpToCancer or follow us on Twitter at @SU2C.

About The Safeway Foundation

Founded in 2001, The Safeway Foundation Supports causes that impact our customers' lives. Our stores provide the opportunity to mobilize funding and create awareness in our neighborhoods through our employees' passion, partnerships with our vendors, and the generous contributions by our customers. We focus on giving locally in the areas of health and human services, hunger relief, education and helping people with disabilities. Safeway Inc. and The Safeway Foundation have invested $1 billion in our neighborhoods since 2001. For more information about The Safeway Foundation, visit www.safewayfoundation.org.

About Stand Up To Cancer

Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) raises funds to accelerate the pace of research to get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives now. SU2C, a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, was established in 2008 by film and media leaders who utilize the industry's resources to engage the public in supporting a new, collaborative model of cancer research, and to increase awareness about progress being made in the fight against the disease. As SU2C's scientific partner, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and a Scientific Advisory Committee led by Nobel Laureate Phillip A. Sharp, Ph.D., conduct rigorous, competitive review processes to identify the best research proposals to recommend for funding, oversee grants administration, and provide expert review of research progress.

For more information on Stand Up To Cancer, visit www.standup2cancer.org

Media Contacts:
SU2C
Adam Miller, Rubenstein Public Relations
212-843-8032
[email protected]

Sheri Goldberg, ID PR
646-723-3800
[email protected]

The Safeway Foundation
Teena Massingill, Director of Public Affairs
925-467-3810
[email protected]

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SOURCE Safeway Inc.