Branding Cancer

CR-UK’s TV advert for this year’s ‘Race for Life’ series of events popped up in a break during Harry Hill’s TV Burp. To begin with I didn’t spot it was a CR-UK advert. As you’d expect for publicity about the largest women-only fundraising event, it features only women. As I was watching with half an eye and even less of an ear I started paying attention by wondering which breast cancer charity was investing in TV adverts.  Then I realised it was CR-UK who, along with Macmillan Cancer Support are the only cancer charities I have ever noticed with a regular TV presence. CR-UK are "the world’s leading charity dedicated to beating cancer", not a breast cancer specific charity. So why were they doing breast cancer adverts?

 

The answer is that they weren’t. Theirs was an advert where only women featured because it was about a ‘women only’ event. It just happened that the woman who spoke about her personal connection with cancer referred to her mum. There was a close up of a different woman's running vest labels which said ‘my mummy’. All women wore, waved or wafted a lot of pink. The 30 seconds advert is on YouTube.

 

I excuse myself for thinking it was a breast cancer advert. I may be alone in my mistake but I doubt it. I'm a middle aged woman. If you show me common breast cancer metaphors I will 'read' breast cancer branding, not plain cancer. There is no mention of breast cancer. I ‘heard’ breast cancer in my mind, based on the branding I thought I was shown. The advert is what it purports to be – a great way of getting women involved in raising money for cancer research but they went overboard on branding it ‘for women’, confusing me in the process. 

 

This accidental blurring of the line between breast cancer and all other cancers may not matter. But it might. Women might join ‘Race for Life’ thinking they’re helping breast cancer when their money won't go to breast cancer research. The best they can hope for is that some of their donation might go towards breast cancer.

 

But women who support breast cancer as a cause, and good on them for that, also need to be aware that when 45,508 women were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006 a massive 100,000+ women were also diagnosed but with other cancers, some of which you never really hear of. These women also need the solidarity and support from their sisters and to benefit from more cancer research. Then there’s the 147,000 or so men per year who also need as much fundraising in cancer research as you can spare.

 

Branding cancer so similarly to breast cancer appeals to women and is plainly effective but is not a straight forwardly good idea.

Some women may be put off getting involved because their memories of, or support for, their sons, brothers, husbands and Dads doesn’t fit in with this excessively pink branding.  Harry Hill's TV Burp is seen by 5.5 million people. The advert was a missed opportunity to show men that cancer is important for them too, even when it's women doing the fundraising for it. Men first go to their GP with more advanced cancers and die earlier than do women with cancer.  

 

The previous year’s advert featured the phrase ‘you’re invited...' and is a whole different ball game. It was still a women only event but there’s no overwhelming pink thing. And there’s a woman with 'in memory of Dad' written on her vest label.

 

Back to their website and “so far, an incredible 4.7 million women have raised over £370 million to fund Cancer Research UK's life-saving work”.

 

Good. But this year’s branding of cancer for their major money spinner as so very female, and so very pink, makes me wince. The event works because it is for women, but that’s not the same story as cancer being only about women.