The Kay Yow Cancer Fund® today announced its participation in #GivingTuesday™, a nationally celebrated holiday that encourages charitable giving each Tuesday following the Thanksgiving holiday. This year it aligns with the Kay Yow Cancer Fund’s 7th anniversary, and to mark this important milestone, Triangle residents are encouraged to sign up for a special #GivingTuesday Thunderclap and consider making a donation to support the Fund's ongoing mission to fund important women's cancer research and serve the underserved.

The Fund was officially founded on December 3, 2007, from the vision of the organization’s namesake Kay Yow, former North Carolina State University head women’s basketball coach.

Kay Yow was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987, and passed away on January 24, 2009, after facing her third bout with the disease. Before her death, she joined forces with the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) and The V Foundation for Cancer Research to form the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization committed to being a part of finding an answer in the fight against women’s cancers through raising money for scientific research, assisting the underserved and unifying people for a common cause.

Coach Yow felt as if the last months of her life were a result of her having the opportunity to participate in research projects coupled with clinical trials. With the creation of the Fund, Coach Yow hoped to raise money to further cutting-edge research conducted by the nation’s top doctors and medical experts to allow more and more cancer patients to have access to experimental drugs. Since the majority of these research projects are privately funded, these researchers desperately need our support in order for them to continue to make strides in finding a cure for cancer.

Since the Fund’s inception, $3.93 million has been granted for scientific research and related programs focused on women’s cancers thanks to the generosity and continued support of donors. However, there’s still much more progress to be made in the scientific community in regards to cancer research.

To donate or learn more about the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, visit KayYow.com or find the Kay Yow Cancer Fund on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.