Canadian Actress Lisa Ray Partners with Pantene Beautiful Lengths to Help Women Undergoing Cancer Treatment

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--To us, it’s hair. But to a woman battling cancer, it’s hope. Since 2008, Pantene Beautiful Lengths has inspired Canadians to grow, cut and donate their healthy-looking hair to provide real-hair wigs for women who have lost their hair due to cancer treatments– at no cost. Today, Pantene is pleased to announce Canadian actress, philanthropist and star Lisa Ray as the new Pantene Beautiful Lengths ambassador in Canada, who will encourage Canadians to grow and share their hair for cancer.

“By supporting Pantene Beautiful Lengths, Canadians can help women living with cancer regain some of their dignity and sense of self. It’s an incredible donation that can make a true difference in someone’s life.”

“A woman’s hair can define her self-image in a way that almost no other physical attribute can. When I was undergoing cancer treatment for myeloma, losing my hair made me feel vulnerable and exposed,” says Pantene Beautiful Lengths ambassador, Lisa Ray. “By supporting Pantene Beautiful Lengths, Canadians can help women living with cancer regain some of their dignity and sense of self. It’s an incredible donation that can make a true difference in someone’s life.”

Ray, an acclaimed award-winning actress and performer, is one of the most successful cover models and celebrities in India. Ray has starred in Canada’s Oscar nominated film, Water, among other prestigious credits and is currently the host of Food Network Canada’s top-rated series, Top Chef Canada. “Lisa is a perfect fit for the Pantene Beautiful Lengths Program,” commented Esther Benzie, Associate Marketing Director of Hair Care at Procter & Gamble in Canada. “Having experienced hair loss due to cancer treatment first-hand, Lisa can relate to the importance of this program in helping women regain their dignity and sense of self.”

To date, Pantene Beautiful Lengths has recevied more than 40,000 hair donations in Canada from generous men, women, and children. The Canadian Cancer Society distributes the free wigs through their nationwide network of wig banks.

“We are incredibly appreciative of our partnership with Pantene and the considerable support they are providing for our mission and service programsThe Pantene Beautiful Lengths campaign goes a long to help women on a cancer journey concentrate on the fight of their lives rather than worry about the prospect of losing their hair due to treatment,” says Julie Wajcman, Manager, National Corporate Development, Canadian Cancer Society. “In addition to donating pony tails to our wig program, Pantene is generously supporting cancer research to help us make an impact against this disease.”

Aside from donating hair, there are other ways for Canadians to get involved and support the program:

One dollar from every purchase of a Pantene Beautiful Lengths product will go to the Canadian Cancer Society*
^{* up to $100,000}

For every new “Like” on the Pantene Canada Facebook page, Pantene will donate one dollar to the Canadian Cancer Society**
^{** up to
$10,000}

Make a donation to the Canadian Cancer Society at www.cancer.ca/pantene

More about cancer in Canada and real-hair wigs:

Approximately 40 per cent of women in Canada will develop a form of cancer in her lifetime.
Real hair wigs are very expensive (can cost bewteen $1,200 - $5,000) which makes it very difficult for many women to afford them.

For more information on how you can get involved, visit PanteneBeautifulLengths.ca or join Pantene Canada’s Facebook page at Facebook.com/PanteneCanada.

About Procter & Gamble

P&G serves approximately 4.6 billion people around the world with its brands. The Company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Fairy®, Gain®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun®, Fusion®, Ace®, Febreze®, Ambi Pur®, SK-II®, and Vicks®. The P&G community includes operations in approximately 75 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

About the Canadian Cancer Society

The Canadian Cancer Society fights cancer by doing everything we can to prevent cancer, save lives and support people living with cancer. Join the fight! Go to fightback.ca to find out how you can help. When you want to know more about cancer, visit our website at cancer.ca or call our toll-free bilingual Cancer Information Service at 1-888 939-3333.

About HairUWear®

From wigs and temporary pieces to professional hair extensions, HairUWear manufactures more hair additions than any other company in the world. Their human hair and synthetic collections blend popular style trends with cutting-edge technology to give women the power to instantly transform their hair styles. The HairUWear family of brands includes the Raquel Welch Signature Collection of wigs, Gabor, hairdo, Put on Pieces, and Great Lengths professional hair extensions. For more information, please visit www.hairuwear.com.