PORTLAND, Maine — Men in Maine are putting in the effort to raise awareness about breast cancer by wearing pink in the month of October.
"I associate pink with breast cancer nowadays, no matter where I see pink, and I think a lot of people have that same attitude," John Fecteau, who is one of Maine's ambassadors this year, said.
Men Wear Pink, a campaign created by the American Cancer Society, aims to help strike up a conversation about early detection and prevention, raise funds for the American Cancer Society as well as show solidarity for anyone who has dealt with a diagnosis.
"Using this pink month to really like make a difference in getting folks to start thinking about breast cancer screenings is important for the work that we're doing," Maitri Chittidi, the senior development manager for the American Cancer Society, said.
"People will kind of look twice and figure out like, 'Hey, I've been seeing you wear pink like every day this week,' and then they can use that as an opportunity," Chittidi said.
So far this month, The Scarborough and Brunswick police departments, Cumberland County Sheriff's Department, and a handful of other businesses have all become ambassadors for the campaign.
In total, Mainers have raised over $13,000 this month for the cause, which goes to fund health care programs and research.
"I didn't realize men could get breast cancer until I had breast cancer," Fecteau added. He said that's another reason why he's passionate about spreading the word. "I'm so glad that I found it as early as I did. It's been eight years now."