I agree that breast cancer is a terrible disease. I know that I would not want to experience it or have anyone else experience it. Breast cancer, according to U.S. Cancer Statistics from 2006, has the second highest incidence rate in the country after prostate cancer.

However, lung and bronchus cancer, according to the same website, kills more people at a higher rate. Those who experience breast cancer have about a 20 percent chance of dying, but those who have lung cancer have a 77 percent chance of dying.

I don’t personally know anyone who has or has had breast cancer, but I know a few people with other types of cancers. One of my teachers in high school had to have her uterus removed because of uterine cancer. My grandfather died of lung cancer when he was just 60 years old. I feel as though Breast Cancer Awareness Month invalidates those people who have experienced other types of cancer.

Yes, we need to find a cure for breast cancer, but what about colon cancer, or bladder cancer or pancreatic and ovarian cancers? There are so many kinds of cancers that I don’t think we should focus on curing only one cancer; we should focus on curing ALL cancers.

I believe Breast Cancer Awareness Month should simply be called Cancer Awareness Month. We should still do breast cancer awareness activities, but we should also include other awareness activities as well.

-Nursing sophomore Melanie Hall