Colors and Months for Cancer Ribbons

Cancer ribbons are a great way to raise awareness, but we have heard from people who are embarrassed when they do not recognize a particular colored ribbon. The good news is that most people are understanding if you don’t know which ribbon color goes with which cancer, as there are a lot. 

But for those of you who wish to familiarize themselves, here’s a list of cancer ribbons that are used to raise awareness for common cancers, as well as the awareness months some have associated with them.

A light purple or lavender ribbon is generally used to represent all cancers as a whole. Sometimes, instead, many different ribbons are combined together to represent all cancers.

Uncommon or rare cancers may be represented in a few ways—either with a light purple ribbon or a black and white zebra print ribbon. The zebra stands for a common saying in medicine. In a field of horses, you are most likely to see horses, but many who are living with cancer realize that "zebras" (rare cancers) occur as well, and when you add all of these uncommon and rare cancers together, they are actually quite common.

It's important to note that specific cancer may be represented by more than one ribbon color and that this can vary depending on where you live. Some ribbon colors also represent specific non-profit groups who advocate for a particular type of cancer. For example, a white or pearl ribbon is used to represent lung cancer, but turquoise ribbons are used by one of the lung cancer organizations.

In addition, there are months dedicated to certain types of cancer, also listed below. June is National Cancer Survivor month

• All Cancers – Light Purple (Lavender)
• Appendix Cancer – Amber
• Bile Duct Cancer – Green (February)
• Bladder Cancer - Yellow (May)
• Bone Cancer – Yellow
• Bone Marrow Transplant – Green
• Brain Cancer – Gray (May)
• Breast Cancer (Women) – Pink (Hot Pink for Inflammatory Breast Cancer, Teal, and Pink for Hereditary Breast Cancer, Teal and Pink for Breast and Gynecologic Cancers Together)
• Breast Cancer (Men) – Light Baby Pink and Baby Blue (October)
• Cancer Survivor – Purple
• Carcinoid Syndrome – Black and White (Zebra-Striped) (November)
• Caregiver – Lavender
• Cervical Cancer – Teal and White (January)
• Childhood Cancer – Gold (September)
• Cholangiocarcinoma - Yellow
• Chondrosarcoma – Yellow
• Colon Cancer – Blue or Brown (March)
• Colorectal Cancer – Blue or Brown (March)
• Endometrial Cancer - Peach
• Esophageal Cancer – Light Purple (periwinkle) (April)
• Ewing's Sarcoma – Yellow
• Gallbladder Cancer – Yellow (February)
• Gastric Cancer – Periwinkle Blue
• Glioblastoma – Gray
• Gynecological Cancer - Teal
• Head and Neck Cancer – Burgundy and Ivory or Red and White (April)
• Hodgkin’s Lymphoma - Violet (September)
• Kidney Cancer (Renal Cell Carcinoma) – Green or Orange (March)
• Laryngeal Cancer – Burgundy and White
• Leiomyosarcoma - Purple
• Leukemia – Orange (September)
• Leukemia and Lymphoma Together – Red/White/Red Stripes (September)
• Liver Cancer – Emerald or Jade Green (October)
• Living (Coping) with Cancer – Blue and Silver
• Lung Cancer – Pearl, Clear, or White (November)
• Lymphedema – Light Blue
• Lymphoma (Non-Hodgkins) – Lime Green (September)
• Melanoma – Black (May)
• Mesothelioma - Pearl
• Myeloma – Burgundy (March)
• Myeloproliferative Diseases – Orange and Red
• Neuroendocrine Cancers – Black and White (Zebra)
• Oral Cancer – Burgundy and White or Red and White
• Osteosarcoma - Yellow
• Ovarian Cancer – Teal (September)
• Pancreatic Cancer – Purple (November)
• Pharyngeal Cancer – Burgundy and White
• Prostate Cancer – Light Blue (September)
• Rare Diseases (Including Rare Cancers) – Black and White (Zebra)
• Rectal Cancer – Blue (March)
• Retinoblastoma – White
• Sarcoma – Yellow (July)
• Skin Cancer – Orange (with a sun) (May)
• Skin Cancer (Squamous Cell Carcinoma) – Red and White (May)
• Small Intestine Cancer – Periwinkle blue
• Stomach Cancer – Periwinkle blue (November)
• Testicular Cancer – Purple (Orchid or Violet) (April)
• Throat Cancer – Burgundy and White
• Thyroid Cancer – Blue/Pink-Purple/Teal (tricolored) (September)
• Uterine Cancer – Peach or Teal (September)
• Waldenstrom’s Macroglobulinemia – Pearl

A Word From Verywell

If you or a loved one has cancer, or you simply want to raise awareness for cancer (or all cancers), wearing a colored ribbon can be your first step. In the end, your support for cancer education and compassion will not go unnoticed.