Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month

Mayor Villaraigosa, former Mayor Dick Riordan and Nancy Daly Riordan join Councilmember Bill Rosendahl to declare November Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month
Originally uploaded by lacityorgcd11.

Today, Mayor Villaraigosa, along with former Mayor Dick Riordan and his wife, Nancy Daly Riordan joined me to declare the month of November as "Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month" in the City of Los Angeles.

Pancreatic Cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Every 15 minutes, someone in the United States is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Approximately 33,730 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year and 32,300 will die of the disease. We must do all we can to bring more awareness to this disease.

Organizations such as the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, Inc, (PanCAN) have worked hard to bring national attention to pancreatic cancer in order to increase and improve research, treatments, prevention programs, and early detection methods.

Earlier this month, PanCAN honored my good friend, Nancy Daly Riordan with the Emily Couric Public Service Award for her exemplary philanthropic service to America's children, youth and families. Although Nancy was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, she has not let the disease deter her from continuing to make a difference in the lives of so many people. She is still deeply involved in the community; serving on numerous boards and organizations throughout the Los Angeles area. In fact, she has become an advocate for pancreatic cancer research and has helped raise awareness of the disease.

I truly admire her tenacity, strength and courage; she continues to be an inspiration to cancer patients nationwide.

-Bill