A sea of pink washed over East Halls quad yesterday as "On the Way to the Cure -- the Komen College Tour," stopped at Penn State as part of a nationwide college campus tour.

The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation created the event as part of its Young Women's Initiative program, designed to educate young adults about the disease, which claims about 40,000 lives each year.

Jane Neitz, assistant director of fraternity and sorority life, said Penn State was an optimal campus for hosting such an event.

"Because of the number of students we have here, it is a great way to spread this information and open up a dialogue on campus," she said.

Opening up such a dialogue is a primary objective for the foundation, Komen Foundation education director Cheryl Kidd said.

"Our main goal is to educate young women about breast cancer and to provide an opportunity to become involved in breast cancer as a movement," Kidd said.

The tour arrived in a pink trailer, complete with computer kiosks and informational materials about breast cancer and proper breast health practices.

Jenny Koberna, a Penn State family nurse practitioner student, was on-hand to provide personal assistance to students in attendance.

"Most women are surprised by what they learn here," she said. "Many of them also come to me for risk-related questions and concerns about family history."

As students filtered in, representatives from the Komen Pittsburgh Race for the Cure offered women hands-on advice on proper breast health care.

A model allowed women to practice the correct way to perform a breast self-examination (BSE), while a diagram showed the different sizes of tumors detected through both BSEs and mammograms.

"The lesson here is not that we have to fear breast cancer, but we must educate and make ourselves aware of it," said Jo Ann Meier, Komen Pittsburgh executive director.

"We found young women have misconceptions about what is appropriate screening for people in this age group," she said. "They don't feel themselves to be at risk at all."

Nearly one out of every seven women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. While less than 5 percent of diagnosed cases involve women in their 20s and 30s, young women are still not risk-free.

"Being young does not protect you against the disease," Komen Foundation health educator Susan Brown said. "The take-home message is that all women are at risk."

Two eight-foot "graffiti walls" gave students a chance to share memories, celebrate survivors and pledge personal support for those touched by breast cancer.

The walls will remain on campus after the tour leaves, as a source of awareness and empowerment. A permanent location for the walls has yet to be determined.

"At first it was a little awkward, since these issues aren't always talked about," Monica Pattillo (freshman-business) said, "By the end, I found it very insightful and very useful. I'll be 20 soon, and this is just a reminder about how careful I have to be."

Valarie Sturiale (senior-biobehavioral health) also said she thought sending a tour to college campuses was a good way to raise student awareness.

"I just wish more males would have attended because I am sure there are many who have somehow been affected by breast cancer," she said. "It would have been nice for them to come support this cause."