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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2023 - 2024
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | September 21, 2023 04:20 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Christine M. Tartaglione and Sen. Kim L. Ward |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Breast Cancer Awareness Month and National Mammography Day 2023 |
| In the near future, we intend to introduce a resolution designating October 2023 as Breast Cancer Awareness Month and October 20, 2023, as National Mammography Day in Pennsylvania. Breast cancer affects all individuals across this state and nation. It is a disease of personal significance to us and our families. Not only is it the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women in the United States -- one in eight women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime -- but also, it affects some men. In fact, one out of every one hundred patients diagnosed with breast cancer is male. While these statistics seem grim, nearly all types of breast cancer can be overcome successfully if they are found and treated promptly. When diagnosed at its earliest stage, the five-year survival rate for this disease is 99%. Still, only 64% of all breast cancer cases are caught early and unfortunately, men are typically diagnosed at a late stage due to a lack of awareness about breast cancer’s impact on the male population. This highlights the urgent need to inform family, friends, and our fellow Pennsylvanians of the risk factors, detection methods, and treatments available for breast cancer. This year’s initiative also marks two significant thirtieth anniversaries. In 1993, President Bill Clinton established the third Friday of October as “National Mammography Day” to encourage women, particularly those in high-risk groups, to make a mammography appointment during the month of October. It was the final touch to making the entire month of October a reminder that every two minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States. Also in 1993, the PA Breast Cancer Coalition was established as a non-profit organization that continues to benefit the Commonwealth by funding research, providing mammograms, assisting lawmakers, and informing the public about breast cancer. To help raise awareness of this disease and the importance of early diagnosis in combating it, please join us in marking October 2023 as Breast Cancer Awareness Month and October 20, 2023, as National Mammography Day in Pennsylvania. |
Introduced as SR182