PROSTATE CANCER FOUNDATION AND MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL STEP UP TO THE PLATE TO RAISE AWARENESS AND FUND RESEARCH FOR PROSTATE CANCER
Annual Home Run Challenge Launches Alongside New Public Service Announcement by Hall of Famer, MLB Chief Baseball Officer and Prostate Cancer Survivor Joe Torre
- Prostate cancer is diagnosed every 2.9 minutes
- One man dies from prostate cancer every 20 minutes
- In 2016, more than 26,000 will die from the disease
PR Newswire – Santa Monica, CA, June 2, 2016
The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) and Major League Baseball (MLB) are once again teaming up to hit home runs for prostate cancer research and encourage fans to “Keep Dad in the Game” as part of the yearly celebration of Father’s Day and annual Home Run Challenge.
This year Joe Torre, MLB’s Chief Baseball Officer, Hall of Famer and prostate cancer survivor, encourages baseball fans everywhere to support PCF’s efforts to end prostate cancer by delivering an important public service announcement, “to step up to the plate, help save lives and get one step closer to finding a cure.”
“Joe has been a great partner in our progress toward improved treatment outcomes and an eventual cure,” said PCF Founder and Chairman Mike Milken. “His work as well as those by MLB and all 30 Clubs has helped us raise more than $45 million for research programs that are saving thousands of lives.”
During this year’s Home Run Challenge, MLB and PCF encourage baseball fans to visit HomeRunChallenge.org to make a pledge for every home run hit during MLB games played from June 13 through Father’s Day, June 19. While visiting HomeRunChallenge.org, fans can also make a simple one-time donation, sign up to receive more information about prostate cancer, and participate in the PCF Home Run Trot promotion to win two (2) all-inclusive tickets to this year’s MLB All-Star Game in San Diego.
To support the 2016 Home Run Challenge, Baseball Fans can visit HomeRunChallenge.org
On Father’s Day, MLB players, managers, coaches, trainers, umpires and groundskeepers will wear blue wristbands and blue ribbon uniform decals. Additionally, Clubs may host pre-game ceremonies and use a special blue MLB Father’s Day line-up card. Major League Baseball Charities has committed $50,000 to PCF as part of this annual effort.
Additionally, MLB Clubs will celebrate Father’s Day in specially designed uniforms for the first time. Father’s Day uniforms and caps will incorporate light blue into Clubs’ regular logos against a grey or white background. MLB will donate royalties earned from the sales of licensed Father’s Day jerseys and caps to PCF.
Celebrate Dad with special MLB commemorative gear and support PCF
Since inception, PCF has been a pioneer in new drug development, providing key funding for FDA-approved treatments that improve survivorship. Funding support of the Home Run Challenge by MLB and its Clubs has helped lower the prostate cancer death rate by more than 50% and made possible discoveries in prostate cancer that now extend to saving lives in eight other forms of cancer.
About the Prostate Cancer Foundation
The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) is the world's leading philanthropic organization funding and accelerating prostate cancer research. Founded in 1993, PCF has raised more than $660 million and provided funding to more than 2,000 research programs at more than 200 cancer centers and universities. The PCF global research enterprise now extends to 19 countries. PCF advocates for greater awareness of prostate cancer and more efficient investment of governmental research funds for transformational cancer research. Its efforts have helped produce a 20-fold increase in government funding for prostate cancer. For more information, visit www.pcf.org. Connect with PCF: Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn
CONTACT:
Abigail Levine
Prostate Cancer Foundation
[email protected]
310-570-4704