Y-ME National Breast Cancer OrganizationTM (Y-ME) is a Chicago-based national nonprofit organization with the mission to ensure, through information, empowerment and peer support, that no one faces breast cancer alone. Y-ME® does not raise money for research. We're here today for those who can't wait for tomorrow's cure.
At the center of the organization is the Y-ME National Breast Cancer Hotline, the only 24/7call center operated by trained peer counselors who are breast cancer survivors and takes more than 40,000 calls a year. Y-ME counselors do not give medical advice but give emotional support and information about breast cancer, procedures and treatment options. Hotline calls are interpreted in 150 languages.
The organization was founded over a kitchen table in 1978 by the late Ann Marcou and Mimi Kaplan, two breast cancer patients who sought to provide support for fellow breast cancer patients and their loved ones. From these humble beginnings, Y-ME transformed into a national organization that helped revolutionize the way breast cancer patients access information and make decisions about their healthcare. Nearly 30 years later, Y-ME is a premier resource for breast cancer information and services, all provided completely free of charge.
