The Challenge Here in Japan
Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women in Japan and remains a significant cause of cancer death.
Yet, when breast cancer is detected at an early stage, outcomes can be excellent. In Japan, five-year survival for women diagnosed at Stage I or Stage II now exceeds 90 percent.
These are not just statistics—they’re years of life.
More years for a mother with her children. More years with their partners. More birthdays, anniversaries, friendships and ordinary days that become extraordinary simply because someone we love is still here.
That is why early detection matters so much.
Closing Japan’s Screening Gap
Japan has made important progress, but we still have work to do.
The national target for breast cancer screening participation is 60 percent, yet in recent surveys participation has remained below that goal.
Every missed screening represents a potential missed opportunity to discover cancer when it is smaller, earlier and often more treatable.
We can—and must—do better.
Turning Generosity Into Action
Run for the Cure® Foundation Japan exists to help close the gap.
Through education, community outreach and programs supporting access to breast cancer screening and care, we work to ensure that more people have the knowledge and opportunity to protect their health.
The mammography units we have helped place in communities across Japan have supported the early detection of breast cancer and helped connect women with the care they need.
This is what your generosity makes possible.
Awareness becomes action. Screening becomes early detection. And early detection can become lives saved.
Why This Mission Is Personal
For me, these statistics have never been simply numbers.
I am a breast cancer survivor.
Every day, I am grateful for early detection, for the skilled medical professionals who cared for me and for the people who stood beside me.
I choose not to spend my life worrying about whether cancer might return. Instead, I devote my energy to helping create a future in which more people survive breast cancer and fewer families experience the devastating loss it can bring.
That is why we educate.
That is why we encourage screening.
That is why we continue to fight.
That is our mission. And that is our promise.
With gratitude—and with resolve. Always.
