MONROE - Art Carter, Green County board chairman, and Monroe Mayor Bill Ross on Monday proclaimed November as Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month in Green County and in the City of Monroe.
They were joined by Ron Niendorf and Tammy Andries, members of the Madison affiliate of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network; and by JoAnn Hawthorn, its Monroe-area community coordinator.
The nationwide Pancreatic Cancer Action Network seeks to support patients and caregivers, raise awareness and increase funding for research, according to Niendorf, coordinator for the Madison affiliate.
Eleven members of the Madison Affiliate met with Wisconsin members of Congress in Washington in June, urging them to support The Pancreatic Cancer Research and Education Act, HR 745 and S 3320.
The legislation is expected to bring increased attention to this form of cancer by the National Cancer institute, according to Hawthorn.
Pancreatic cancer is the fourth-leading cancer killer in the United States, with a 5-year survival rate of six percent.
In 2010, an estimated 43,000 Americans will be diagnosed with the disease; and nearly 37,000 will die - with about 720 of those in Wisconsin.
Seventy-four percent of pancreatic cancer patients die within the first 12 months of diagnosis.
Currently, no cure or any early diagnostic tools are available.
Pancreatic cancer is the most under-funded, under-recognized and least studied of all major cancer killers, with less than 2 percent of the National Cancer Institute annual budget dedicated to pancreatic cancer research, according to Hawthorn.
Patrick Swayze, Luciano Pavarotti, Michael Landon, Henry Mancini, Count Basie and Rex Harrison are among those who have lost their lives to pancreatic cancer.
They were joined by Ron Niendorf and Tammy Andries, members of the Madison affiliate of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network; and by JoAnn Hawthorn, its Monroe-area community coordinator.
The nationwide Pancreatic Cancer Action Network seeks to support patients and caregivers, raise awareness and increase funding for research, according to Niendorf, coordinator for the Madison affiliate.
Eleven members of the Madison Affiliate met with Wisconsin members of Congress in Washington in June, urging them to support The Pancreatic Cancer Research and Education Act, HR 745 and S 3320.
The legislation is expected to bring increased attention to this form of cancer by the National Cancer institute, according to Hawthorn.
Pancreatic cancer is the fourth-leading cancer killer in the United States, with a 5-year survival rate of six percent.
In 2010, an estimated 43,000 Americans will be diagnosed with the disease; and nearly 37,000 will die - with about 720 of those in Wisconsin.
Seventy-four percent of pancreatic cancer patients die within the first 12 months of diagnosis.
Currently, no cure or any early diagnostic tools are available.
Pancreatic cancer is the most under-funded, under-recognized and least studied of all major cancer killers, with less than 2 percent of the National Cancer Institute annual budget dedicated to pancreatic cancer research, according to Hawthorn.
Patrick Swayze, Luciano Pavarotti, Michael Landon, Henry Mancini, Count Basie and Rex Harrison are among those who have lost their lives to pancreatic cancer.