Oct. 06, 2021
HARRISBURG – In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Rep. Craig Williams (R-Delaware/Chester) is bringing attention to the importance of preventative care and early detection.
“Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an important time of year for my family,” Williams stated. “Both my mother and my grandmother passed away from breast cancer. Early detection is key to beating breast cancer. When it is detected early, it is easier to treat.”
Williams previously served as a Board Member for the American Cancer Society and as Chairman for the Real Men Wear Pink campaign of Greater Philadelphia. The Real Men Wear Pink campaign raises awareness and money to fund breast cancer research and provide services.
More than 280,000 women will be diagnosed in the United States with breast cancer in 2021. More than 13,000 of those women are Pennsylvanians. About one in eight women will experience an invasive form of breast cancer in their lifetime.
Even though women are more susceptible to breast cancer, men are still affected by it. About one in five men with breast cancer also have a close relative (i.e. mother, sister, grandmother) with the disease. Early detection and prevention can lessen these numbers and lessen the number of Pennsylvanians affected by this disease.
“Thousands of women missed their mammograms during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Williams stated. “We need to reach those women and urge them to reschedule screenings that could save their lives. According to the PA Breast Cancer Coalition, when detected early, the five-year survival rate from breast cancer is 99%.”
As per the American Cancer Society, women over the age of 45 should get an annual mammogram. Identifying high-risk factors is also important in preventing breast cancer.
Through the PA Dept. of Health – Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program (PA-BCCEDP), women without insurance may qualify for a free screening.
To find out more information, please visit here.
The PA Breast Cancer Coalition has helped women across the Commonwealth since 1993. Some of the resources they provide include scheduling mammograms, obtaining insurance coverage, prescription costs, legal assistance and much more. For more information, please visit
pabreastcancer.org/find-help/patient-resources.
The Capitol Fountain in Harrisburg has been dyed pink for all of October. Please join me on Friday, Oct. 15, from 8:30 a.m. to 3p.m., for the
PA Breast Cancer Coalition Conference, and Monday, Oct. 18, at 11a.m. for
Mammograms Delayed, Diagnosis Denied Press Conference.
Representative Craig Williams
160th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
repcraigwilliams.com
Media Contact: John Kelemen
jkelemen@pahousegop.com