Who is Susan G. Komen?

Susan G. Komen was a model who died in 1980 at the age of 36 after a three-year battle with breast cancer. Her younger sister, Nancy G. Brinker, founded the Susan G. Komen Foundation in her honor, according to the foundation's website, Komen.org.

Brinker started the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation in 1982 because of a promise she made to her dying sister to help women with breast cancer, according to the foundation. Both believed that if women knew more about breast cancer and their choices, survival rates would increase. The foundation raises money for breast cancer research, organizes charity runs and walks and promotes self-advocacy and early detection.