Congrats to First Lady Laura Bush, who illuminated the White House in a Pink Glow Tuesday night in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Facts you should know:
- Congress designated October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month in 1985.
- The National Breast Cancer Awareness Month program, administered by the American Cancer Society, is dedicated to increasing awareness about the importance of the early detection.
- Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer in women and the second most common cause of cancer death in women in the U.S.
- The ACS says that one in eight women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime.
- Recent heightened awareness of breast cancer risk has led to an increase in the number of women undergoing screening, leading to detection of cancers in earlier stages and an improval in survival rates.
- The ACS recommends that all women aged 40 and over should be screened for breast cancer every year.
- The ACS also recommends monthly self-examinations as a helpful deterrent.
- Men can get breast cancer. The disease is responsible for about 1 percent of cancer deaths in men.
- If someone in your family has or had breast cancer, you may be at higher risk of getting the disease yourself.
- Susan G. Komen for the Cure is the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists focusing on the Breast Cancer Fight. Visit their site to learn more.
