Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Official Resigns Over Abortion Dispute 
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
September 29, 2004
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — A medical research analyst for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation has resigned. She is upset that the group denies the link between abortion and breast cancer and has sent large grants to Planned Parenthood.
When confronted with data showing Komen made donations to Planned Parenthood, the information didn’t sit well with Komen analyst Eve Sanchez Silver.
"The Foundation has done so much for so many women through its programs and research grants," Sanchez Silver told LifeNews.com. "But this revelation about Planned Parenthood and [Komen], indicates a well thought out funding strategy."
According to former Komen public relations director Kristin Kelly, Komen affiliates awarded $38.4 million in grants to support community outreach programs in 2003. That figure includes 21 grants to their local Planned Parenthood chapters totaling more than $475,000.
Sanchez Silver, a two-time breast cancer survivor and Komen’s Hispanic advisor, said the decision to send Komen money to Planned Parenthood came at a time when local Komen affiliates were struggling to find enough funds to keep afloat.
"Our [Komen] Advisory Councils were all aware of grassroots efforts in need of funding all across the country," Sanchez Silver told LifeNews.com.
Sanchez Silver is the director of Cinta Latina Research, an organization that conducts research into breast cancer issues and their effects on minorities. She is concerned that Planned Parenthood targets minorities and noted that such groups have abortions at higher rates than Caucasians.
The focus on ethnic women also comes into play in Sanchez Silver’s concerns that Komen ignores the abortion-breast cancer link.
Sanchez Silver says that women deserve to know the recent research showing a link exists and that women who have induced abortions are at greater risk for contracting breast cancer than women who carry the pregnancy to term.
However, for minorities, that risk can be even greater.
"Black and Latina women have very aggressive breast cancers, often reported very late, often, unhappily, too late," Sanchez Silver told LifeNews.com. "If there are facts to be known they should be broadcasted, not swept under the rug."
Karen Malec, president of the Coalition on Abortion/Breast Cancer, applauded Sanchez Silver’s courage. Her groups has frequently highlighted Komen’s refusal to acknowledge the abortion-breast cancer link and funding of the nation’s largest abortion business.
"The Susan G. Komen Foundation is one of the nation’s largest cancer fundraising groups, and it’s mission is supposedly dedicated to fighting breast cancer," Malec said.
When Sanchez Silver told the Komen board she was resigning, she said they "were gracious and accepting of my personal convictions."
She hopes her resignation will prompt Komen to reexamine its funding and research policies.
Related web sites:
Cinta Latina Research – https://www.cintalatina.org
Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation – https://www.komen.org
