WWE Puts John Cena in Pink to Support Komen and Fight Breast Cancer

It’s hard to do serious damage to an institution that is doing great work toward putting an end to breast cancer, one of the world’s leading reasons for women dying. But it turned out that all it took was for Susan G. Komen for the Cure to say it was going to stop sending some cash over to a fellow nonprofit focused on women’s health, Planned Parenthood.

That decision proved to be controversial, seriously damaging for the Komen name and resulted in a lot of good PR and cash donations to Planned Parenthood. Komen eventually decided to re-instate the dough for Planned Parenthood but not before lots of donors had already sworn off giving more funds to Komen.

The whole thing is now back in the news thanks to this month's release of Planned Bullyhood, a book by former Susan G. Komen for the Cure vice president for public policy Karen Handel, who resigned in the midst of the turmoil. According to the Daily Caller, her new book is receiving some “pushback from Democratic National Committee chairman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Republican strategist Karl Rove.”

Komen, of course, would like the whole thing to go away so it can go about rebuilding its brand — and continue to put the hurt on breast cancer. One effective way to fight the good fight is to partner with a brand known for its brawn: WWE, whose start wrestler John Cena is hleping promote pink and black Komen-branded gear, on sale through October's Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Wrestling fans and others can show their support with Komen-branded T-shirts, headbands, hats, wristbands, you name it. The move leverages WWE's massive audience — more than five million watch WWE weekly just on TV, a press release states — and both brand's commitment to public affairs and fundraising for a cure.

“This partnership will reach millions of women and families with breast cancer education and awareness messages, while raising funds for Komen research and health outreach programs in the communities we serve,” stated Dorothy Jones, VP of Marketing for Susan G. Komen. “We’re ready to cheer on John Cena and the WWE Superstars and thank them for helping Komen fulfill our promise to end breast cancer.”

"Breast cancer is a devastating disease, and we’re committed to using WWE’s global resources to support Komen’s fight to end breast cancer forever,” added Cena. “I’ll be proud to wear pink in the ring to support this great cause.”