Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation, American Society of Plastic Surgeons Unite to Increase Breast Reconstruction Awareness, Education and Access

Inaugural Breast Reconstruction Awareness (BRA) Day USA, Oct. 17, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 6, 2012

Contact: ASPS Public Relations
847-228-9900
media@plasticsurgery.org

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. – To combat research showing 7 out of 10 women diagnosed with breast cancer are not informed of their breast reconstruction options, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and The Plastic Surgery Foundation (The PSF) today announced their partnership with the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation (MTF) in support of the first national Breast Reconstruction Awareness (BRA) Day USA, October 17, 2012. As the nation's leading tissue bank, MTF has aligned with BRA Day USA to help raise awareness among women everywhere about their breast reconstruction options and to demonstrate their dedication to serving breast cancer patients and the surgeons who treat them.

"We are happy to have MTF as a sponsor of BRA Day USA because they understand the physical and emotional aspects of breast reconstruction, and the important role tissue donation can play in this process," said ASPS President Malcolm Z. Roth, MD. "With their support, the ASPS and The PSF will be able to reach many more of the women who are unaware of their breast reconstruction options after mastectomy."

"BRA Day USA is grounded in the same principles on which MTF was founded; educating and enriching the lives of patients and the surgical community," said MTF CEO Bruce Stroever. "As such, MTF and its recovery partners are proud to join forces with the ASPS and The PSF to sponsor this initiative, the effect of which will prove life-changing for so many women.  Our sponsorship of BRA Day allows us to further solidify our support and relationships with breast reconstruction patients and the surgeons, nurses, and other medical professionals who serve them."

The U.S. and 20 other countries will join together for BRA Day on October 17. BRA Day USA is an initiative designed to promote education, awareness and access to breast reconstruction surgery following breast cancer care. This initiative is a collaborative effort between the ASPS and The PSF.

Over the next two years award-winning recording artist, New York Times bestselling author and humanitarian Jewel will work with the ASPS/The PSF as their national spokesperson, advocating on behalf of BRA Day USA through media appearances, public service announcements, a dedicated BRA Day USA song entitled, "Flower," and benefit concert event.

"BRA Day USA represents the most significant recipient-related cause that MTF has chosen to support in its 25-year history," said Heather Brennan, Group Product Director, General & Plastics.  "This speaks volumes to the value we see in BRA Day’s mission to educate women of their post-mastectomy reconstruction options. Through our work with plastic surgeons we’ve learned that breast reconstruction not only represents a physical restoration, but a mental and spiritual one as well, and we’re so excited to be a part of that transformation for so many women."　

Please visit BRADayUSA.org, Facebook.com/BreastReconAwareness and Twitter (@BRADayUSA) for more information about BRA Day USA events, the Jewel concert, the BRA Day USA song, charity and corporate partnerships and more.

About ASPS and The PSF
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) is the largest plastic surgery specialty organization in the world. Founded in 1931, the society is composed of board-certified plastic surgeons that perform cosmetic and reconstructive surgery. The mission of ASPS is to advance quality care to plastic surgery patients by encouraging high standards of training, ethics, physician practice and research in plastic surgery. The Society advocates for patient safety, such as requiring its members to operate in accredited surgical facilities that have passed rigorous external review of equipment and staffing.  ASPS works in concert with The Plastic Surgery Foundation (The PSF), founded in 1948, which supports research, international volunteer programs and visiting professor programs. The foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life of patients through research and development. The PSF accomplishes its mission by providing invaluable support to the research of plastic surgery sciences through a variety of grant programs.

About MTF
The Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation (www.MTF.org), the nation's leading tissue bank, changes lives by connecting donors and transplant recipients. As a non-profit service organization, MTF is dedicated to providing quality tissue through a commitment to excellence in education, research, recovery and care for recipients, donors and their families. Since our inception in 1987, MTF has received tissue from more than 90,000 donors and distributed more than 5 million grafts for transplantation, including FlexHD and FlexHD Pliable, acellular dermal matrices that are used in breast reconstruction.

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