Among pink T-shirts, ribbons, bandannas and hats; men, women and children, of all ages and sizes, races and creeds, gathered together to walk and run for one thing — a cure. Over 6,000 people came out Sunday morning for the 20th running of the Komen Race for the Cure along the Charles River in Brighton. Participants gathered at Daly Field to honor the survivors that finished the 5k race as well as to remember those who were unable to combat the disease and became victims to breast cancer. “It’s very exciting. It gives you a good feeling that people really care,” said breast cancer survivor Michaela Pelletier, 52, of Amesbury. “This is a way to have breast cancer awareness and involve the community … It gets bigger every year. This was Pelletier’s fourth year participating in the race. She has been cancer free for six years. She was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was 46 years old. Mickey Lawrence, who works with the foundation, said they expect to exceed last year’s pledge of $600,000 despite the slow economy.” According to representatives from the Susan G. Komen Foundation, 80 cents of every dollar donated to the foundation is used for cancer awareness and research. The low overhead costs, they said, can be attributed to their huge fleet of volunteers, over 75,000 across the country. Over 1.5 million people participate in the race nationwide each year, some are families of cancer survivors and victims. According to the Komen Web site, an estimated 39,800 women will die from breast cancer in 2003. Breast cancer is the leading cancer site among American women, second only to lung cancer. “It’s a nice spirit, it’s a nice feeling, seeing husbands and wives together who are obviously walking for their spouse,” said Mary Mercer, 43, of Cambridge. “It’s nice, nice to see.” Mercer ran with her sister Kathy Sullivan, while the their two sisters, nieces and nephew walked. Sullivan said the family decided to participate after their mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in the spring. Sullivan, 42, of Watertown, said it meant a lot to her to run with her sister among the presence of other people who have experienced similar situations and who carry the same “spirit.” Another set of sisters, paternal twins, who both enjoy to run, decided to try their first 5k race. “It just seemed like a good cause, we saw the brochure and picked it up,” said Christine Dobies, who will be a sophomore at Newton North High School this fall. “We had never done a 5k and this one seemed like a really good cause.” Her sister, Mary, agreed, adding that it’s always nice when she and her sister can participate in a race together. “It was really good to see the people all coming together,” she said.