The film “Pink Ribbons Inc.” will be screened on Saturday, April 12, at 7:30 p.m. at the West Windsor Arts Center, 952 Alexander Road, West Windsor. The event is co-sponsored by the Breast Cancer Resource Center, provider of information and services in Mercer County. Tickets will be available at the door for $8.
Based on the book “Pink Ribbons Inc: Breast Cancer and the Politics of Philanthropy” by Samantha King, the documentary raises controversial issues with respect to a charitable movement. Commissioned by the National Film Board of Canada, “Pink Ribbons Inc.” captures the growth of the Pink Ribbon campaign in the three decades since its start in the 1980s. In the film, interviews with breast cancer activists are interspersed with footage of the spirited events that bring breast cancer survivors, family, friends, and corporate sponsors together.
The film raises questions about pink ribbon marketing with broad medical and economic implications. For example, does emphasis on “cure” in the naming of fundraising events reflect the funding priorities? Are charities doing enough to fund research on prevention, especially potential environmental causes of breast cancer?
Elane Gutterman will present a talk and facilitate a discussion about the film. A West Windsor resident since 1989, she has had 25 years of research experience in academic and pharmaceutical industry settings, and has been involved in varied clinical areas, including breast cancer, and has numerous published articles. Three years ago, she became a breast cancer survivor.
Gutterman received a bachelor of arts degree in American studies from SUNY Albany, a master’s of social work from Yeshiva University, and a Ph.D. is sociomedical sciences from Columbia University.
A professor at Rutgers University for nine years, she conducted health services and epidemiological research, studied hospitalization, resource utilization, and other health outcomes. She also taught graduate-level courses on survey research methods and social work practice.
For the next nine years Gutterman was a vice president and senior research scientist at Health Data Analytics. She conducted studies of pharmacoepidemiology, medication outcomes, drug safety, health care utilization, costs of illness, medication compliance, and health-related quality of life based on new data collection or secondary analysis of data from clinical trials, electronic medical records, health care claims, or survey research.
She has been president and principal epidemiologist at Via Research LLC since 2008. Gutterman conducted studies in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America addressing epidemiology, health care utilization, and costs of illness based on new data collection or secondary analysis of data from electronic medical or administrative health data, health insurance care claims, or survey research.
Saturday Film Series, West Windsor Arts Council, 952 Alexander Road, West Windsor. Saturday, April 12, 7:30 p.m. $8. 609-716-1931. www.westwindsorarts.org.
