Fran Visco, a 19-year breast cancer survivor, is the first president of the National Breast Cancer Coalition and Fund, and a member of its board of directors and executive committee. Ms. Visco was a partner in a Philadelphia law firm before leaving law to focus on NBCC/F's work.

In 1993, President Clinton appointed Ms. Visco as one of three members of the President's Cancer Panel, and she was the first consumer to chair the Integration Panel of the Department of Defense Peer-Review Breast Cancer Research Program. She co-chaired the National Action Plan on Breast Cancer and served on the National Cancer Policy Board. Ms. Visco has been a member of Institute of Medicine panels and has served on other policy committees, including the steering committees of the Breast Cancer International Research Group. She has testified before Congressional committees, has lectured throughout the United States and internationally on the politics of breast cancer and women’s health advocacy issues. Ms. Visco and her husband are residents of Philadelphia and the parents of a 20-year-old son.

Blog Entries by Fran Visco

For Mother's Day, I Want an End to Breast Cancer

Posted May 9, 2007 | 05:26 PM (EST)


For Mother's Day I want an end to breast cancer. No jewelry, sweaters, flowers or chocolates. I want to know mothers can stop worrying about the women in their lives and themselves. I know it won't happen this year. But this year we can at least get Congress to be...

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Nonprofit Leaders: Beware!

Posted November 9, 2006 | 02:32 PM (EST)


Recently I wrote a piece for this website stressing the importance of political activism in the war on breast cancer and specifically highlighting Sen. Tom Coburn's (R-OK) role in single-handedly blocking the crucial Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act (BCERA) from reaching the Senate floor. I questioned his...

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Coburn to Breast Cancer Community: Drop Dead

Posted October 1, 2006 | 09:03 PM (EST)


Breast cancer is a political issue. And women with breast cancer and all who care about the issue have become politically active. Why? Because we do not know how to prevent breast cancer, how to detect it truly early, or how to cure it. And the federal government has a...

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