Pretty packaging, neat sans serif fonts, and alluring color palettes — these are just a few of the things that come to mind when we think of “good” design. “But design is actually much bigger than that,” says Corrine Ellsworth-Beaumont.
As the CEO of Know Your Lemons, a non-profit saving lives through creative breast health education for early detection, her aspirations for good design eclipse the embellishments you see on consumer goods.
“Design is about understanding problems facing people and creating design solutions that beautifully address people’s needs,” she tells me. In her case, the design solutions in question revolve around inspiring people to take charge of their breast health in the hopes of increasing the odds of early breast cancer detection.
When discovered in its earliest stage, breast cancer survival rates are nearly 100%. When symptoms chronically go unnoticed, however, the odds of overcoming late stage breast cancer are nearly insurmountable.
That’s the vital difference between early and late detection. And, most often, it’s a distinction that comes down to knowledge and education — which is where Corrine’s organization gets its hands dirty creating powerful designs that educate, empower, and transcend.
Worldwide, roughly 50% of the population have breasts. And, yet, only 2% of women are familiar with the signs and symptoms of breast cancer. While Corrine is quick to point out that men are also afflicted by the disease (take, for instance, Beyonce’s dad), it remains somewhat rare (1 in about 100 cases).
“Our main thing is encouraging people to get the app because it answers all the questions, helps people remember to do their self exams, and give people all that knowledge,” says Corrine.
The Know Your Lemons app is a free resource that provides information about potential breast cancer warning signs, how to perform self-exams, what to expect during your first mammogram or ultrasound, as well as tips on how to speak to your health care practitioners.
Corrine was just beginning a master’s degree in graphic design when she lost her grandmother to breast cancer. Having lost both her maternal and paternal grandmothers to the disease, she was left with a cascade of questions. “I started to think, what does this mean me for me as someone in their early 20s?,” she says.
Curious about the affects of her family history and the warning signs she should be wary of, she headed to the library of a local cancer hospital. Unsure of how to advise someone of her age, she was handed pamphlets and directed to multiple websites.
Text-heavy and brimming with stock images of women smiling, the material was dense and dissonant. “I realized I didn’t know anything about breast health,” she remarks. “I started wondering why I didn’t know this information.”
The shortcomings of high school health class, and the stigmatization of breasts, are partly to blame — “In school we learn about every part of the body except breasts,” she says. The sexualization of breasts in tandem with the fear associated with cancer makes for a lethal combination, making for breast cancer resources that are difficult to digest.
Leaving with more questions than she had going in, she resolved to dedicate her master’s project to visualizing breast cancer myths. Using design to circumvent stigma, she ventured to find a stand-in for breasts that could bypass social barriers in a friendly and engaging way.
Melons, jugs, cones, and other objects were used euphemistically to communicate breast cancer symptoms. Then, she discovered lemons.
One day, during a research-based mammogram, she asked the technician: “What does a cancer lump feel like?” It was hard and immovable, like a nut or lemon seed, she was told. “Then the whole metaphor came together and that’s when I started visualizing everything using lemons.”
Determined to communicate her project on a global scale, she moved to the UK to undertake a PhD in design. Corrine’s burgeoning non-profit remained a side project, until the loss of a childhood friend to breast cancer prompted her to quit her job and use her savings to jumpstart the charity as a newly single mom.
When I press her about what it was like to take that leap of faith, she tells me it was the possibility of educating people that kept her going. “I knew the power of design could be useful in this space,” says Corrine. “No one else was thinking about design as one of the solutions to breast health education.”
Today, Know Your Lemons is credited with helping many get diagnosed early through accessible design that helps folks conduct self-exams, spot potential symptoms, and advocate for themselves. “That confidence and knowledge can make all the difference in being able to get diagnosed,” according to Corrine.
Since, globally, most women self-detect their breast cancer, the emphasis on education has never been more vital.
With resources translated in 33 different languages (soon-to-be 34 with the addition of Urdu) and 700 trained volunteer educators across 60 countries worldwide, the organization is opening up discussions in a way that’s unprecedented.
“We can communicate equally to men with our visuals as we do women or people who are transgender or don’t identify as a particular gender,” says Corrine. By recognizing taboos and barriers, they’re able to overcome cultural hurdles that might otherwise make it difficult to communicate information about breast health.
“When people ask what I do, I’m like, I save people’s lives through design,” she says.
For those seeking purposeful work, she recommends combining your talents with whatever fills your cup — no matter how disparate those interests may be. “Think about what you’re passionate about and combine it with a cause that’s close to your heart.”