The Blue Lights Campaign is a year-long initiative culminating in March that aims to increase awareness of colon cancer by educating the public as to the importance of early detection.
Our Mission
Colon cancer is the #2 cause of cancer death, yet fewer than 65% of age appropriate Americans are screened. More people die from Colon Cancer than from breast cancer. Most people are aware of breast cancer from the pink campaigns.
Our mission is to share the news that colon cancer is a very common and often deadly disease, but with screening, it is PREVENTABLE.
Our goal is to increase screenings and reduce colon cancer deaths.
The Blue Lights Campaign
Since 2014, Dr. Marianne Ritchie has been lighting the skyline blue to raise awareness for colon cancer and to promote early detection through screenings.
The BLUE LIGHTS CAMPAIGN in Philadelphia and beyond takes place each March during Colon Cancer Awareness Month. This includes over 30 buildings in BLUE including skyscrapers, arenas, iconic Boathouse Row, the Ben Franklin Bridge and even the Pennsylvania State Capitol. The campaign was recognized with the top national award for Colon Cancer Awareness from the American College of Gastroenterology for spreading this life-saving message.
Dr. Marianne Ritchie
Dr. Marianne Ritchie is a graduate of Jefferson Medical College. After training in Gastroenterology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, she returned to Philadelphia where she has practiced for over 30 years.
Dr. Ritchie founded the Blue Lights Campaign as a means of promoting awareness of colon cancer with the hope of increasing screenings through procedures like colonoscopies.
Dr. Ritchie is the host of Your Radio Doctor, the only all-medical radio show in Philadelphia each Sunday at 10 am. She is also the MEDICAL CONTRIBUTOR for another radio show, Women to Watch each Sunday at 7 pm. Both radio shows air on WPHT, radio 1210 AM.
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