Think Pink Tea Returns Oct. 25 in Mobile, Honoring Breast Cancer Survivors and ‘The Hands That Hold Us’

Breast cancer survivors and the people who carried them through treatment will share the spotlight on Sunday, Oct. 25, when the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute hosts its 16th annual Think Pink Tea at the Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center. The free afternoon event runs from 3 to 5 p.m., with doors opening at 2:30 p.m., and this year’s theme, “The Hands That Hold Us,” honors the caregivers, loved ones, friends and medical professionals who stand beside patients from diagnosis through survivorship.

A theme for the people behind the survivors

The Think Pink Tea has always been a celebration of survivors’ courage and resilience. This year, organizers are widening the circle.

“The Hands That Hold Us” puts special emphasis on the support system around each patient: the spouse who drives to every appointment, the friend who brings dinner after chemotherapy, the family member who sits in the waiting room, and the nurses, physicians and other health care workers who guide patients through each step of care. Organizers said the theme recognizes how that support helps people face a diagnosis, get through treatment and build a life after cancer.

The focus on caregivers reflects a growing awareness in cancer care that family and friends carry a heavy load of their own. Mitchell Cancer Institute researchers have studied that issue directly. A research coordinator at the institute recently presented findings at a palliative care summit in Gulf Shores on Project Cornerstone, a USA Health and UAB partnership that uses trained community navigators and telehealth coaching to support rural and African American family caregivers of patients with advanced cancer.

Caregivers often juggle appointments, medications, insurance paperwork, transportation and household responsibilities while also coping with their own worry and fatigue. Recognizing them alongside survivors sends a message that their role is part of the healing, too, and that they also deserve support.

A runway show starring survivors

One of the afternoon’s highlights is a runway show in which breast cancer survivors model the latest fashions from Belk and Ballin’s LTD. Each walk down the runway also showcases a personal story of perseverance and hope, giving guests a glimpse of the journeys behind the smiles.

For many survivors, the fashion show is a chance to celebrate how far they have come and to show others who are newly diagnosed what life after treatment can look like.

Experts on prevention, research and treatment

The Think Pink Tea is also an educational event. Attendees will hear from Mitchell Cancer Institute experts during a panel discussion covering breast cancer prevention, research, treatment and survivorship.

Panels like this give survivors, caregivers and people who simply want to learn more a chance to hear directly from specialists about the latest developments in care and about what they can do to lower their risk or catch cancer early.

Free to attend, supported by sponsors

The Think Pink Tea is free for survivors and supporters. To make that possible, the event relies on the generosity of sponsors and community partners.

Organizers said community members who cannot attend can still help in several ways:

• Becoming a sponsor of the event
• Making a donation
• Sharing information about the tea with survivors, caregivers and others who may want to attend

About the Mitchell Cancer Institute

The USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute is the cancer center of the University of South Alabama’s health system in Mobile. It brings together cancer treatment, clinical trials and laboratory research, giving patients along the central Gulf Coast access to specialized care closer to home.

The institute has continued to grow its services, recently adding a urologic oncologist to expand robotic cancer surgery, and it has received support to help patients cover gas and hotel costs that can stand between them and treatment. Events like the Think Pink Tea are part of its community outreach, connecting patients and families with education and with one another.

Why screening matters

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a national campaign to encourage screening and early detection. About 1 in 8 women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer during her lifetime, and aside from skin cancer, it is the most common cancer diagnosed in American women.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends that women at average risk get a screening mammogram every other year from age 40 through 74. Women with a family history of breast cancer, a known genetic risk or other concerns should talk with their doctor about whether they need to start earlier or be screened more often. Men can also develop breast cancer, though it is far less common, and any new lump or change in the breast should be checked by a health care provider.

The Think Pink Tea is one of several breast cancer awareness events on the calendar this month. The Order of Athena’s breast cancer awareness 5K, postponed by weather earlier this month, is now set for Saturday, Oct. 24, at Rolston Park in Coden, and Orange Beach police have rolled out a pink patrol car that survivors are invited to sign.

The tea’s setting, the Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center, sits on the downtown Mobile riverfront and is named for former Mobile Mayor Arthur R. Outlaw. Guests should plan to arrive a little early to find parking downtown and take their seats before the 3 p.m. start.

If you go

• What: 16th Annual Think Pink Tea, hosted by the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute
• Theme: “The Hands That Hold Us”
• When: Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, 3 to 5 p.m.; doors open at 2:30 p.m.
• Where: Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center, downtown Mobile
• Cost: Free for survivors and supporters
• Highlights: Survivor runway show featuring Belk and Ballin’s LTD fashions; educational panel with Mitchell Cancer Institute experts
• Ways to help: Sponsorships, donations and spreading the word