Get Your Rear in Gear® – Twin Cities is August 14

The country’s leading Run/Walk series for colon cancer awareness

adds the Tour de Tush® Bike Ride to a day of activities at Staring Lake in Eden Prairie

MINNEAPOLIS (June 28, 2016) --- On Sunday, Aug. 14, nearly 4,000 runners, walkers and bikers are expected to congregate near Staring Lake in Eden Prairie, Minn. to take part in the Colon Cancer Coalition’s 12th annual Get Your Rear in Gear® 5K Run/Walk and, for the first time in Minnesota, the Tour de Tush® Bike Ride.

Get Your Rear in Gear presented by Minnesota Gastroenterology is the nation’s largest special event for colon cancer awareness in the country. This family-friendly event is planned to raise awareness and encourage screening for colorectal cancer, the nation’s No. 2 cancer killer.

In addition to the 8- and 25-mile Tour de Tush bike rides, new festivities will also include food trucks and other activities for all ages. Survivors and caregivers will be recognized and supported throughout the day.

Edina, Minn.-based Colon Cancer Coalition hosts this event each year. The Twin Cities event is one of nearly 50 special events planned in 2016, events planned in cities across the country to educate and raise funds colon cancer screening and prevention. It is because of the support of the Twin Cities community 12 years ago that the organization is able to have such a wide impact on this disease.

“We are excited to add the Tour de Tush 8- and 25-mile bike rides to our regular Get Your Rear in Gear 5K Run/Walk,” says Anne Carlson, executive director for the Colon Cancer Coalition. “By adding a bike ride we can reach more people with the important message of screening and symptom awareness for colon cancer. We are seeing an alarming increase in the number of colon cancer patients diagnosed before 50, the recommended screening age. Approximately 14,000 cases are diagnosed each year in younger adults. By educating others on the signs and symptoms of the disease we hope to get these cases diagnosed more quickly and reverse this trend.”

Many colon cancer symptoms are also signs of something else, but if you experience one or more of the below for a week or more, please talk with your doctor.

- Change in bathroom habits
- Change in color or shape of stool
- Rectal bleeding
- Blood in toilet after bowel movement
- Stomach discomfort or cramping
- Unexplained weight loss or fatigue

Get Your Rear in Gear & Tour de Tush

Run/Walk and Bike Ride for Colon Cancer Awareness

Sunday, August 14 at Staring Lake, Eden Prairie

Contact: Molly Steinke, 952-278-3142

Money from previous Get Your Rear in Gear – Twin Cities events have supported the SAGE Scopes Screening Program, a division of the Minnesota Department of Health, providing colon cancer screening and treatment services to Minnesotans who are under- or uninsured, and the American Indian Cancer Foundation to support stronger, more effective colorectal cancer education, outreach and navigation in tribal communities. Additional funds have developed programing and materials to help individuals identify their family’s cancer history and mitigate the risks of genetic cancers.

Just the facts about colon cancer:

- One in 20 Americans will be diagnosed with colon cancer during their lifetime.
- Minnesota’s screening rates sit at just under 71% and ranks 9th in the country.
- Currently 70% of those not up-to-date on screening have insurance.
- There is a 90% five-year survival rate when the disease is caught in early stages, but only 10% when it is diagnosed in late stages.

- Only 40% of patients nationwide are diagnosed with early stage disease, many times because they put off screening.
- One in seven patients diagnosed with colon cancer are diagnosed before the recommended screening age of 50.
- When diagnosed before 50, the disease is most often diagnosed in later stages.

Over 120 teams are expected for the event on Aug. 14. Awards will be given to the largest team, the top fundraising team, and the top fundraising individual. Festivities will begin at 8:30 a.m. with the Kids’ Fun Run. The 5K timed run and 25-mile bike ride will follow at 9 a.m. with the 5K walk and 8-mile ride beginning at 9:05 a.m. Registration information is available online at ColonCancerCoalition.org/TwinCities. Race day registration is available at the event. Information about volunteering, fundraising, sponsoring the event or forming a team is also posted on the website.

About the Colon Cancer Coalition

The Colon Cancer Coalition is a non-profit organization based in Minneapolis, Minn. dedicated to encouraging screening and raising awareness of colon cancer. The organization’s signature Get Your Rear in Gear® and Tour de Tush® event series are volunteer-driven in communities throughout the United States. Since 2004, millions of dollars have been granted by the Colon Cancer Coalition to local programs that promote early prevention, screening, and patient support services for this disease. By making the words colon, colorectal and colonoscopy a part of the everyday language, we believe we can overcome the fear and decrease deaths from this largely preventable cancer. For more information visit ColonCancerCoalition.org.

@GYRIG @ TourdeTush

#GYRIGTwinCities #GetYourRearInGear #CheckYourColon

PRESS CONTACTS

Molly Mulvehill Steinke, Nemer Fieger

952-278-3142, 612-309-1677, molly@nemerfieger.com

Nina Sveinson, Nemer Fieger, nsveinson@nemerfieger.com

Erin Peterson, Colon Cancer Coalition

651-247-4023, erin@coloncancercoalition.org