WHAT: National non-profit the Colorectal Cancer Alliance will be making its first NFL awareness debut during the league's My Cause My Cleats Charity Week, which allows players to share causes that mean a lot to them. Before games, players wear personalized cleats prior to warm-ups and have more color options available during the game. With the theme “Don’t Fumble On Getting Screened for Colon Cancer”, Baltimore Ravens third year tight end Maxx Williams will be wearing custom cleats during this Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions to raise awareness about young onset colorectal cancer and in memory of his uncle, Paul “Chumly” Scheuble, who passed away this year from the disease at the age of 48. Post game, Maxx will be giving his custom cleats to his aunt. Maxx tweeted a preview of his cleats and mentioned his partnership with the organization.

“First on behalf of the entire Colorectal Cancer Alliance, we want to send our heartfelt thanks to Maxx Williams and his family for helping to spread awareness for this disease,” said Michael Sapienza CEO of Colorectal Cancer Alliance. “It is incredibly important for the NFL and individuals like Maxx to continue to bring Colorectal Cancer into mainstream conversations.”

In 2018, the Colorectal Cancer Alliance has committed $3 million dollars to young onset in the areas of awareness, patient support and research.

The latest young onset colorectal cancer statistics and facts*:

• Colorectal cancer incident rates in adults aged under 50 rose by 1.6% from 2000 to 2013
• From 2000 to 2014, colorectal cancer death rates increased by 13% in those aged under 50 years
• There has been a 51% increase in young onset colorectal cancer incidence within the 20-49 age group since 1994
• Without action, researchers predict that by 2030 more than 1 in 10 colon cancers and nearly 1 in 4 rectal cancers will be diagnosed in people under 50.

*Source: Colorectal Cancer Statistics, 2017" from CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians

WHEN: Sunday, December 3, 2017 - Baltimore Ravens vs. Detroit Lions

TIME: 1:00PM Kickoff

WHERE: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD

ADDITIONAL INFO:

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer related deaths in men and women combined.

With the strategic mission of servicing both colon and rectal cancer patients, combined with fierce determination to end colorectal cancer within our lifetime, the Colorectal Cancer Alliance has set three ambitious goals:

• Double the number of patients served by 2021
• Save 100,000 lives with preventive screening in the next 10 years
• Invest $10 million in critical research

The American Cancer Society estimates that this year 150,000+ people will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer, and close to 50,000+ will lose their life to the disease. If caught early, colorectal cancer is up to 90% beatable.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

Twitter: @ccalliance @williams_maxx @ravens @nfl
Instagram: @colorectalcanceralliance
Facebook: Facebook.com/ColorectalCancerAlliance
Hashtags: #MyCauseMyCleats #TomorrowCantWait

About the Colorectal Cancer Alliance

The Colorectal Cancer Alliance is a national nonprofit committed to ending colorectal cancer. Working with our nation of passionate allies, we diligently support the needs of patients and families, caregivers, and survivors, eagerly raise awareness of preventative screening, and continually strive to fund critical research. As allies in the struggle, we are fiercely determined to end colorectal cancer within our lifetime. For more information, visit colorectalcancer.org.