When it comes to fighting for a cause, Kathleen Swinney is a pro. She is the wife of Clemson University’s head football coach, Dabo Swinney, but her husband is not the only one in the house who knows how to win big. If raising funds for breast cancer research and spreading breast cancer awareness were a sport, she would have 15 years of national championship trophies. Inspired by her own experiences with breast cancer and her deep belief in the power of proactivity, she works relentlessly with Dabo’s All In Team Foundation to make sure finding improved treatments and a cure for breast cancer stay at the forefront of medical research.
Swinney’s dedication to breast cancer research began with her sister. In 2003, her older sister, Lisa, was diagnosed with breast cancer in her late 30s. She had a double mastectomy and underwent chemotherapy and was eventually declared cancer free. Afterward, through blood and genetic testing, Lisa found out she had the BRCA gene, a genetic mutation that increases an individual’s risk of getting breast cancer by 90%. Nine years later, after Lisa spent five years on Tamoxifen, a drug that can treat or significantly lower the risk of breast cancer, doctors found that if you have the BRCA gene, you should never go off Tamoxifen. After a year of being off Tamoxifen, the cancer returned to Lisa’s brain and lungs. She lived about twenty-two months and passed away at the age of 49.
Upon learning that her sister had the BRCA gene, Swinney got tested and found that she has the gene as well. Swinney knew she had to be proactive to do everything possible to protect herself against breast cancer. After weighing the options, she knew that having a double mastectomy was the best way.
“After seeing my sister go through what she went through, I knew I wanted to have a mastectomy. Otherwise, I’d spend the rest of my life wondering when this cancer was going to come, so it was a no brainer. I had three boys, and I knew I wanted to be there for them. I had several doctors who said they would tell their wives to have the prophylactic double mastectomy as well,” says Swinney.
Having a prophylactic double mastectomy made Swinney’s chances of getting breast cancer less than 1%. She knows that the research proving that this is the best way to be proactive in breast cancer prevention has quite possibly kept her alive. Says Swinney, “I feel like it’s why I’m alive today. I’m alive because of research. Through research, doctors can catch things early, create more medicines, and the goal of course is a cure. It was a crazy journey, but I want to use it to help others.”
Helping others is exactly what Swinney is doing through the foundation she and her husband started, Dabo’s All In Team Foundation. By the end of 2024, the foundation will have raised and donated $2.25 million to breast cancer prevention and research. One of the biggest fundraisers for the foundation is the Dabo Swinney Ladies Clinic, held each July. Swinney says of the event,
“Thousands of women come out and we do football, games, shopping, song and dance, the mobile mammography is there. It’s a big celebration and a very fun day. We had our 15th annual Ladies Clinic this year. One year, right after winning the National Championship, we raised over $500,000 with the clinic. Most years we raise $200,000-$300,000 that one day.”
These funds have been used to help purchase two mobile mammography buses in the upstate serving seven counties. Each bus costs around $1 million, along with fuel and maintenance costs. The buses serve women who are uninsured or underinsured.
“I tell the women at the Ladies Clinic to look at those buses and know that they helped buy those buses,” says Swinney.
In addition to the Ladies Clinic, the All In Team Foundation partners with WCCP The Roar 105.5 FM, to do a Tigers for Ta Tas campaign. Listeners can call in and donate toTigers for Tatas and/or purchase items such as wristbands for $10 and T-shirts for $30. You can also purchase other things like hats, stickers, and this year, a limited edition blend of Methodical Coffee called the “ALL IN Blend”. All of that can be found at http://www.theroarfm.com/news/2024_tigers_for_tatas/ all proceeds go straight to the foundation which goes straight to lowering mammogram costs.
“We’ve raised between $600,000 and $700,000 through that program. We put a 3-D mammography machine in a few hospitals in the upstate. These machines are $200,000 each. We’ve donated to many breast cancer research programs at Clemson and Anderson University, and we’ve been able to donate to give free mammograms at local hospitals. We’ve given over $2 million just to prevention and research for breast cancer,” says Swinney.
With October being Breast Cancer Awareness month, Swinney encourages women to make a conscious effort to do something to be proactive in their own prevention plan.
“Women are used to taking care of kids and other people and putting ourselves last. We tend to put off taking care of our own health. But even if you are not planning to get screened this month, at least make an appointment to get your next mammogram. It’s a small step, but it’s progress in proactivity,” says Swinney.
The All In Team Foundation’s mobile mammography buses circulate throughout the upstate to make getting a mammogram easy and convenient. Says Swinney, “You can go on your lunch break if you need to. An appointment is best, but they will take walk ins. If you have insurance, you can present them with your insurance card and that helps defray the cost of women who don’t have insurance. In the past, the cost of a mammogram has been $150 out of pocket, but it’s probably more now. The mobile units are free for those who don’t have insurance.” The phone number for scheduling a mammogram on one of the Bon Secours mobile mammography coaches, it’s 864-675-4875.
As for finding a cure for breast cancer, which is ultimately the goal of this work, there isn’t a cure yet, but new medicines and treatments are being developed every day and tomorrow could be the day. If you would like to join Kathleen Swinney in being a champion for the cure, visit Dabo’s All In Team Foundation’s website at www.dabosallinteam.com and click the donate link on the menu.
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