NFL, Sleep Number & the American Cancer Society Team Up for Crucial Catch
October 13, 2023
Wellness technology leader, Sleep Number Corporation, has been announced as the first Official Crucial Catch Partner of the NFL – joining forces with the league and the American Cancer Society (ACS) in the fight against cancer. As part of the partnership, Sleep Number will provide additional cancer prevention resources to the Crucial Catch program, which empowers fans to take their health into their own hands through cancer screening, education and risk detection.
The Defender presented by Sleep Number focuses on overall health and wellbeing, providing an online resource for fans to learn how to reduce their cancer risk and find local screening centers. Users can also determine what type of screening they need, schedule screening reminders and having their cancer-related questions answered through ACS’s 24/7 chat and hotline.
The tool also features a quiz that analyzes users’ health information to provide personalized recommendations on how they can reduce their cancer risk. They are asked questions about common lifestyle practices that may impact their chances of getting cancer, such as sleep, diet and exercise. The assessment then provides a personalized overview of lifestyle changes to minimize cancer risks.
“Championing early cancer detection and prevention initiatives through The Defender is closely tied to Sleep Number’s purpose: to improve the health and wellbeing of society through higher quality sleep,” said Shelly Ibach, Chair, President and CEO of Sleep Number. “We know that simple lifestyle changes - like prioritizing sleep - can have a meaningful impact on risks for certain types of cancers. Sleep Number is proud to join the NFL and ACS in the fight against cancer. It takes all of us to end cancer as we know it, for everyone.”
Launched in 2009, Crucial Catch wants to help more people catch cancer early and addresses healthcare inequity in underserved communities. It promotes the prevention and early detection of cancer. To date, the program has raised over $27 million for ACS through Crucial Catch merchandise sales, NFL Auction items and fundraising. The initiative takes place during games and in the community throughout the NFL season.
Funds raised through Crucial Catch support the ACS’s CHANGE (Community Health Advocates Implementing Nationwide Grants for Empowerment and Equity) grant program. This program promotes health equity and addresses early detection disparities through community-based cancer prevention programs. It supports community health centers in all 32 NFL team markets by increasing access to low or free cancer screenings in communities that need them the most. These grants have contributed to more than 650,000 cancer screenings in under-resourced communities and have impacted over 1.3 million men and women with education, patient navigation and screening resources.
For the second season in a row, the Crucial Catch PSA is a part of the “We See You” campaign, focusing on the concept of everyday strength and featuring New Orleans Saints’ Foster Moreau, who is in remission from a Hodgkin's Lymphoma diagnosis. “When I was diagnosed with cancer, I realized that it is a journey that you need to come up with a plan for quickly with the help of others and listen to the advice of professionals. I also saw firsthand the importance of early detection. I'm happy to use my experience and story to emphasize to others the importance of checkups and screenings.”
The NFL and ACS are also piloting "Links to Care Community Grants" in select NFL team markets. These feature select team healthcare partners and CHANGE-funded community health centers collaborating to assess challenges within the breast cancer screening to the treatment process and develop action plans based on evidence-based practices.