Novartis is taking its metastatic breast cancer (MBC) campaign to Instagram.
A newly launched video series on IGTV, part of the long-running “Make Your Dialogue Count” effort, shifts focus to patients’ changed needs during the COVID-19 crisis.
The first video focuses on mindfulness, with two MBC patients talking about the practice and demonstrating actual techniques. Future topics on the series, hashtagged #MBCConIGTV, will include nutrition and isolation. All the video themes are ones that members of the MBC community told Novartis they’re interested in.
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“Patients are experiencing different emotions at this point in 2020 that are so different from 2019 as they’re navigating a breast cancer diagnosis,” Shannon Campbell, senior vice president and franchise head at Novartis Oncology, said. “We wanted to be mindful of the differences and make sure that our resources, approach and campaign match the tone and tenor in the environment we find ourselves in now versus last year.”
Debuted during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Instagram account @MBCDialogue has an updated look and feel as it moves on from the 2019 campaign called “Kiss This 4 MBC.” For every like, comment or share of @MBCDialogue, Novartis will donate $ 50 to fund MBC research for a total up to $ 200,000.
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“It wasn’t that many years ago that metastatic breast cancer didn’t really have a voice,” Campbell said. “The voice was about the pink ribbon movement and early breast cancer. Now, what you can see in our branded communications and in our unbranded support communications is this idea of metastatic breast cancer women as not only survivors but able to thrive.”
Novartis breast cancer treatments include CDK4/6 kinase inhibitor Kisqali and PI3K inhibitor Piqray.