Economy didn’t affect race

Corona del Mar breast cancer survivor Lauren Heller is the top fundraiser for the Susan G. Komen Orange County Race for the Cure for the third year in a row.

The blockbuster run/walk drew more than 30,000 people to Fashion Island on a hazy, overcast Sunday that organizers say is on pace to set a record of more than $3 million donated for cancer support services and research.

All the money has not trickled in yet, but Heller’s individual total so far is almost at $50,000.

She raises most of her money by contacting friends, colleagues and businesses for donations, and last year raised about $66,000. Her numbers declined slightly this time around, she speculated, because of the financial difficulty a lot of businesses are having.

“This year, with the economy, it wasn’t really the individuals whose donations went down but a couple of the companies couldn’t give as much,” Heller said.

Three years ago she decided to try and raise $1,800 for the Susan G. Komen foundation and ended up making 10 times that.

Heller dealt with a resurgence of her cancer earlier this year, but it is now completely in remission, she reports.

“I didn’t want to live my life in cancer. I’m just not one of those that like to talk about it or look up stuff; I just want to live a normal life,” Heller said.

Economic difficulty did not prevent the sea of participants wearing pink from bringing in more money than ever before.

The majority of the proceeds, 75%, will go toward breast cancer education programs and medical services for the underinsured, and the other 25% will go toward research, officials said.

ALAN BLANK may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or at alan.blank@latimes.com.