Photo Release -- Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer Raises $3.2 Million This Year

FORT WAYNE, Ind., Oct. 30, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer announced that it has raised a total of $3.2 million for Breast Cancer Research since November 1, 2013. All funds support breast cancer research at the Indiana University (IU) Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center in Indianapolis, a nationally ranked cancer center. The Foundation recently pledged an incremental $15 million to the IU cancer center, and the $3.2 million will be the first payment toward this pledge. To date, the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer has donated just over $23 million, with a goal to eradicate breast cancer.

Vera Bradley Cofounder and Chief Creative Officer, Barbara Bradley Baekgaard Dr. Bryan Schneider is an associate professor of medicine and of medical and molecular genetics and the Associate Director of the Institute for Personalized Medicine at the IU School of Medicine. He is also a member of the breast cancer research program at the IU Simon Cancer Center.

Photos accompanying this release are available at:

http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=28751

http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=28752

"The work the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer funds is truly remarkable, and I'm proud that each year this research brings us closer to a cure," Barbara Bradley Baekgaard, Vera Bradley Foundation and Vera Bradley Designs, Inc. Cofounder.

"The support we receive from the Vera Bradley Foundation is astounding, both in dollars that pay for vital research, and also with their energy and passion for making real progress," says Dr. Bryan Schneider, Vera Bradley Investigator.

Schneider is an associate professor of medicine and of medical and molecular genetics and the Associate Director of the Institute for Personalized Medicine at the IU School of Medicine. He is also a member of the breast cancer research program at the IU Simon Cancer Center.

About the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer:

The Foundation is celebrating its 16th year of funding the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer Research Laboratories at the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center in Indianapolis. Since 1998, the Foundation has played an integral role in changing the face of breast cancer research by supporting 22 labs and 36 researchers and clinicians who are leading major advancements in drug therapies and setting a worldwide standard. The Foundation receives funding through national events, a $1 million annual gift from Vera Bradley VRA and through donations on verabradley.org.

The photo is also available at Newscom, www.newscom.com, and via AP PhotoExpress.