The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) has drafted teams from the NBA and NHL to help fight prostate cancer with the 2nd Annual PCF Black History Month Assist Challenge.
Teams participating during February include Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns and the New Jersey Devils hockey team, the first NHL team to join the program.
The PCF Black History Month Assist Challenge is a first-of-its-kind, multi-dimensional program designed to create awareness and raise money to fight a disease that affects more than three million men in the U.S., with one in nine men being diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime. African American men are disproportionately impacted as one in seven will develop the disease, are 76 percent more likely to develop prostate cancer than Caucasian men, and are more than twice as likely to die from the disease than men of other ethnicities.
“We are thrilled and honored that the NBA and NHL have joined our efforts in reaching out to save men’s lives,” said Jonathan W. Simons, MD, PCF’s CEO. “There remains a need for greater dialogue about the disparity of cancer rates in African American men. During Black History Month, the NBA and NHL teams will help us raise funds and bring awareness of the facts regarding prostate cancer, and what men need to do to know their risks and numbers.”
Through in-person, multi-media, social media and digital outreach, the month-long campaign held during Black History Month provides the perfect opportunity to provide life-saving information about risks and screening for prostate cancer. Teams will also be airing public service announcements at games, on television, on radio, and on various social media channels reaching millions of viewers.
In 2019, the Atlanta Hawks made history by being the first NBA team to partner with PCF for the inaugural campaign, which raised $150,000 to support life-saving research. “Our partnership with PCF for the Black History Month Assist Challenge was a great success last year and we are excited to collaborate again for a good cause,” said Hawks’ Vice Chair of the Board and Naismith Memorial Hall of Famer Grant Hill. “Together we can continue to educate our community and provide the resources needed to inspire men to take this disease seriously and possibly save lives.”
For more information about the Black History Month Assist Challenge and prostate cancer visit www.pcf.org/assist.
