National Mammography Day is Oct. 19. Have you had yours? If not, schedule it. This month and day provide an opportunity for you to get involved with National Breast Cancer Awareness Month by taking charge of your health and encouraging your family and friends to do the same.
There will be an estimated 16,130 new cases of breast cancer in Arkansas in 2018, according to the American Cancer Society — and 6,910 deaths.
The ACS recommends that women start getting yearly mammograms at age 40. Women who have a particularly high risk of breast cancer should start getting mammograms at an earlier age.
Though men have a comparatively much lower risk than women of developing breast cancer and mammograms are not routinely recommended, the risk is still there.
So, it is important for men talk with their doctors if they discover a lump in their breast.
Counties with a standardized mortality ratio of more than one exceed the statewide mortality rate, according to 2004-2013 data collected by the Arkansas Department of Health.
Union County has a rate of 1.12.
In 2013, black females in the state had a breast mortality rate of 27.2 deaths per 100,000 population, while white females had a rate of 20.6.
The median age at death from breast cancer from 2009 to 2013 was 69 years. The median age at diagnosis was 63.
President Bill Clinton designated the third Friday of October as National Mammography Day in 1993.
This day serves as a reminder to all women that the best defense is early detection.
A mammogram can often detect a problem before there is any outward physical sign.
A simple X-ray image taken of your breasts is the screening for signs of breast cancer. Mammograms are offered at a variety of places like hospitals, freestanding testing centers, and departments within clinics.
Maya Angelou once said, “Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. But anger is like fire. It burns it all clean.”
I encourage you to get angry and fight. A mammogram could save your life or the life of someone you love. Get it done.
Shea Wilson is the former managing editor of the El Dorado News-Times. E-mail her at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @SheaWilson7.