The Aviva Weekend to Breakthrough Breast Cancer is an event organised by Breakthrough Weekend Ltd., which is wholly owned by and gives all its taxable profits to Breakthrough Breast Cancer, registered charity number 1062636 under the Gift Aid Scheme. We have engaged CauseForce, Inc.® and CauseForce UK, Ltd. to manage the event. 

The Aviva Weekend to Breakthrough Breast Cancer is a Breakthrough Breast Cancer event to raise money for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Breakthrough Breast Cancer is the leading charity committed to fighting breast cancer through research and education and established the UK's first dedicated breast cancer research centre in 1999, in partnership with the Institute of Cancer Research. Breakthrough's scientific work ultimately aims to eradicate breast cancer by discovering the causes of the disease, finding methods of prevention and developing new treatments, with results being translated as rapidly as possible into practical help for patients.

Our campaigning and educational work aims to raise the profile of breast cancer, to fight for the best possible treatments and services for everyone, and to increase awareness and understanding of the issues surrounding the disease.

We aim to:

• initiate and support research which aims ultimately to eradicate breast cancer by discovering the causes of the disease, finding methods of prevention and developing new treatments
• create a focus for breast cancer research through the Breakthrough Toby Robins Breast Cancer Research Centre, housed in the Mary-Jean Mitchell Green building at the Institute of Cancer Research; the first of its kind in the UK
• encourage the rapid communication of research findings for the practical benefit of people with breast cancer
• foster partnerships between organisations concerned with breast cancer
• promote breast cancer education and awareness among the public, policy makers, health professionals and the media
• campaign for policies that support breast cancer research and a pioneering approach to breast cancer services in the UK.

Just a few of Breakthrough Breast Cancer’s recent achievements:

Opening of the Breakthrough Research Centre
Our patron, HRH The Prince of Wales, opened the Breakthrough Toby Robins Breast Cancer Research Centre in 1999, only eight years after Breakthrough Breast Cancer was founded.

Breakthrough Generations Study Launched
Breakthrough launched the Generations Study, the largest investigation ever into the causes of breast cancer involving 100,000 women over 50 years.

Breakthrough Scientists’ Breast Cancer Cell Discovery
Breakthrough scientists identified that a protein, Endo180, helps a cell to work out its orientation and direction. By understanding how cells move, therapies may be developed to target this movement and ultimately prevent cancer cells from spreading to other parts of the body.

Breakthrough Scientists Identified a Potential New Drug
Scientists reported that a new drug, a PARP inhibitor, may be very effective in killing tumour cells in people who have faults in the breast cancer genes BRCA1 and BRCA2. The drug is likely to dramatically improve treatment of patients with certain types of hereditary breast cancer, and be much less toxic to healthy cells than standard chemotherapy. This drug has just entered its first clinical trial.

Best Standards for Patients  
Breakthrough developed The Service Pledge for Breast Cancer, for patients and health professionals to work in partnership towards improved breast cancer services. To date seven breast units have adopted The Service Pledge.

Successful Campaign Ensures 2 Weeks to See a Specialist by 2008
After vigorous campaigning by Breakthrough, the Government announced that by 2008 every woman with breast problems referred by her GP to a specialist would receive an appointment for diagnosis within two weeks.

Availability of drug Herceptin
Breakthrough campaigned successfully for the drug Herceptin to be made available for women with advanced breast cancer.

Extended NHS Breast Screening Programme
Breakthrough successfully campaigned for the NHS Breast Screening Programme to be extended to women aged up to 70 by the end of 2005.


How we will spend the money you raise
Proceeds from The Aviva Weekend to Breakthrough Breast Cancer will help fund the critical work of Breakthrough Breast Cancer.

• £10 will buy 500 microfuge tubes where reactions in the laboratory take place.
• £125 will buy a pipette for measuring exact amounts of solutions during experiments.
• £500 will buy a transilluminator, essential for scientists to study DNA during experiments.
• £4,000 will buy a specialist incubator that is vital for growing cells within the laboratory.
• £16,000 will buy enough specialist chemicals and essential equipment to enable one scientist to carry out their research for a year.

To find out more about Breakthrough Breast Cancer please visit www.breakthrough.org.uk or call 08080 100 200.

To find out about Aviva, click here.

About Breast Cancer

Almost 41,000 women and 300 men are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in the UK. More than 1,000 women die from the disease every month. Approximately one in nine women in the UK will be diagnosed with breast cancer in the course of her lifetime. On a more positive note, deaths from breast cancer have fallen over 20% over the past 10 years.


About CauseForce

The Aviva Weekend to Breakthough Breast Cancer is produced by CauseForce, Inc.® on behalf of Breakthrough Weekend Ltd. CauseForce is an organisation that successfully produces large-scale events which enable non-profit groups to raise significant sums of money to fund research and services for important causes. The events CauseForce has produced have raised millions of pounds benefiting breast cancer research by creating and implementing experiential events that make a difference in the lives of participants as well as delivering awareness and pounds to the cause. The seasoned team gives CauseForce a rich core of experience that translates into events that are safe and meaningful, while reaching new heights in effective fundraising.

For more information, please call us on 0870 950 8888 or email us at .