Whereas Prostate cancer is the most common major cancer in the United States and the second most lethal cancer in men; and
Commonwealth of Massachusetts
A Proclamation
His Excellency Governor Deval L. Patrick
Whereas Two million American men are currently living with prostate cancer. African-American men are at a particular risk; they are 60% more likely to be stricken and 2.5 times more likely to die; and
Whereas The incidence of prostate cancer has risen sharply in younger men since 1986, with a seven-fold increase in men aged 50 and younger and a three-fold increase in men aged 50 to 59; and
Whereas Prostate cancer has become even more common than breast cancer. Yet, public awareness and support are lagging behind, and men do not have accurate diagnostic tools akin to life-saving mammograms; and
Whereas The lack of accurate diagnostic tools for men cause prostate cancer to become both a patient care crisis and socio-economic problem, reducing quality of life in millions of men and adding billions of dollars to health care costs; and
Whereas Through public awareness, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts seeks to minimize the devastating effects of prostate cancer among all Massachusetts men,
Now, Therefore, I, Deval L. Patrick, Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, do hereby proclaim September 15th, 2011, to be
Prostate Cancer Awareness Day
And urge all the citizens of the Commonwealth to take cognizance of this event and participate fittingly in its observance.
Given at the Executive Chamber in Boston, twelfth day of September, in the year two thousand and eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America, the two hundred and thirty-fifth.
By His Excellency
Deval L. Patrick
Governor of the Commonwealth
William Francis Galvin
Secretary of the Commonwealth
God Save the Commonwealth of Massachusetts