Armenia Citizens Organize Concert to Raise Money for Expensive Breast Cancer Treatment

A charity concert featuring Armenian music will be held at the Composers’ House in Yerevan on Jul. 29 at 7 pm. The program includes Armenian folk and classical music, as well as popular and Armenian minstrel music (“gusanakan”), according to the Facebook event page.

The event is organized by the MamaSyu Fund, which aims to support women in Armenia diagnosed with breast cancer by raising public awareness as well as fundraising for expensive treatment. At a press conference earlier this year, MamaSyu representatives said that one in every 13 women in Armenia is diagnosed with breast cancer, 30% of whom are prescribed the expensive drug Herceptin. Each ampule of Herceptin costs $3,000 USD and a single treatment can include 18 rounds, which amounts to $54,000 USD. To top it all off, the drug is neither paid for nor subsidized by the state.

The MamaSyu Fund has already organized a number of events to help raise money for women with breast cancer including a very successful rock concert, a children’s art show (attended by the US and British ambassadors to Armenia) and an exhibit of modern art.

At the concert on Jul. 29, local musicians will perform pieces by such renowned composers as Komitas, Arno Babajanyan and Sayat Nova, among others. All proceeds from the concert will go to the MamaSyu Fund. Tickets cost 1,000 AMD (less than $3 USD).