National Health Council — Voluntary Health Agency Guide

Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization

Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization's mission is to ensure, through information, empowerment and peer support, that no one faces breast cancer alone.

Y-ME has the only 24-hour hotline staffed entirely by trained breast cancer survivors. Additionally, 11 affiliates throughout the nation provide services such as support groups, early detection workshops, wigs and prostheses for women with limited resources, and advocacy on breast cancer related policies in their respective communities.

About the condition(s):

Cancers are named after the part of the body from which they originate. Breast cancer originates in the breast tissue. Like other cancers, breast cancer can invade and grow into the tissue surrounding the breast. It can also travel to other parts of the body and form new tumors, a process called metastasis.

Cells in the body normally divide (reproduce) only when new cells are needed. Sometimes, cells in a part of the body grow and divide out of control, which creates a mass of tissue called a tumor. If the cells that are growing out of control are normal cells, the tumor is called benign (not cancerous.) If however, the cells that are growing out of control are abnormal and don't function like the body's normal cells, the tumor is called malignant (cancerous).