At the Tuesday Council meeting, from left, Los Alamos residents Carla Valentine and Nancy Partridge accept a proclamation from Los Alamos County Councilor Katrina Martin declaring October ‘Breast Cancer Awareness Month’. Photo by Kirsten Laskey/ladailypost.com

COUNTY News:

Los Alamos County Council presented a proclamation during its regular meeting Oct. 1 declaring October as “Breast Cancer Awareness Month”.

Councilor Katrina Martin read the proclamation:

WHEREAS: According to the American Cancer Society, this year 271,270 people will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in the U.S.; more than 42,260 women and men in the U.S. are expected to die from breast cancer; and

WHEREAS: Besides skin cancer, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among American women; it is second only to lung cancer as cause of cancer death; and

WHEREAS: A woman living in the U.S. has a 1-in-8 lifetime risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer, and men have a 1 in 833 lifetime risk of getting breast cancer; and

WHEREAS: Breast cancer typically produces no symptoms when the tumor is small and most easily treated; and although breast cancer generally has been referred to as a single disease, there are up to 21 distinct subtypes; and

WHEREAS: The Los Alamos Council on Cancer provides education about breast cancer and supports cancer prevention and treatment; they partner with the American Cancer Society and the National Cosmetology Association to provide the “Look good and Feel Better” program for women with breast cancer; and

WHEREAS: The Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program at the NM Department of Health provides eligible women with free breast and cervical cancer screening; and

WHEREAS: Public education about breast cancer symptoms, early detection and treatment is the key to fighting breast cancer;

NOW, THEREFORE, on behalf of the Council of the Incorporated County of Los Alamos, I do hereby proclaim the Month of October as “BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH” in Los Alamos County, and encourage our community to become educated about the early warning signs and causes of this particular cancer and its effective treatment.