City Of Lynwood:  Breast Cancer Awareness In Lynwood

Press release from the City of Lynwood:

October 7, 2021

The Lynwood City Council unanimously passed a proclamation this week in support of October as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

For two Lynwood councilmembers, José Luis Solache and Rita Soto, it was personal—since both have lost loved ones to breast cancer which is the world’s most common cancer.

Solache lost his cherished mother, Maria Luz Solache, last year to breast cancer

“I think about her and miss her every single day,” he said. “She guided me into this life of public service, always encouraging me to do the right thing.”

“I enthusiastically supported the proclamation because as a society we can do better in raising awareness, educating people and continuing to invest in research against this dreaded disease.”

For Lynwood City Councilmember Rita Soto, it is a time of personal reflection. Her cherished aunt, Maria died from breast cancer.

“She was an energetic single mom who was diagnosed when she was 50. She fought cancer for ten years before she died,” said the councilmember who has been getting annual checkups since she was 40.

“As women, we often don’t care of ourselves. We are so busy making sure that our family members are healthy that sometimes we forget to take care of ourselves. Please make sure you see your doctor regularly.”

Both councilmembers emphasized the importance of education and learning self-detection techniques.

Some important facts:

In the United States, there are over 280,000 new cases every year— 1 in 8 U.S. women (about 13%) will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of their lifetime.

A woman’s risk of breast cancer nearly doubles if she has a first-degree relative (mother, sister, daughter) who has been diagnosed with breast cancer.

But don’t think that if breast cancer isn’t in your family, that you are immune. You’re not. About 85% of breast cancers occur in women who have no family history of breast cancer.

For more information about breast cancer, visit here. 

We hope you use this month as a reminder of the importance of learning more about breast cancer.

This press release was produced by the City of Lynwood. The views expressed here are the author’s own.