COLUMBUS – Senator Shirley Smith is grateful for the bipartisan passage of Senate Bill 201 from the Senate Committee on Health, Human Services, & Aging on Tuesday morning. This legislation designates October 13th as Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day.
“Raising awareness about Metastatic breast cancer is the first step in advocacy about this disease,” Senator Smith said after the committee vote. “I am proud to have worked with University Hospitals on this issue and thank them for their leadership on this front against breast cancer. I look forward to a vote by the full Senate to show that this legislative body supports women’s health.”
Metastatic breast cancer is the spread of breast cancer to other organs. Because metastatic breast cancer usually stems from a reoccurrence, this stage IV cancer is exceptionally dangerous. It is considered an incurable, systemic, chronic disease. Treatments for metastatic breast cancer focus on extending the woman’s life.
The first National Breast Cancer Awareness Month began in October 1985. In 2004, New Yorkers Jane Soyer and Nina Schulman established the Metastatic Breast Cancer Network, a national independent advocate group of and for breast cancer survivors. Three years later, New York City became the first political jurisdiction to declare October 13 as Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day. Today, 33 American cities and 9 states officially recognize Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day.
