October 1949 - January 9, 2006

This post is a little different from my normal posts. Today I wanted to get a little personal. Many of you may not know, but six years ago today I lost my mother, my best friend, to Stage 4 Colon Cancer. In that six years I have have given her two grandchildren that she has never held and I have seen friends I grew up with also lose their life to this disease. I have learned many things in the last six years but one thing that has remained the same is my mother’s wish to help spread of the word of Colon Cancer Awareness. Therefore today’s first post is dedicated to my mother and gives a little information on the disease and the “numbers”.

3 – Third most commonly diagnosed cancer in the US
2 – Second leading cause of cancer death in men and women combined in the US
141,210 – The number of people estimated to be diagnosed in 2011 in the US
49,380 - The number who will lose their lives from colorectal cancer in the US
90 – The percentage of new cases in people 50 or older
95 – The percentage of deaths from colorectal cancer in people 50 or older
90 - The five-year survival rate for colorectal cancer when found early (local stage)
1 – The number of people needed to help spread the word about prevention. If you talk to your friend and your friend talks to their friend, and so on and so forth.
1 – The number of lives saved that would make my mother’s death more meaningful.

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness month so I will be planning a weekly post with more information as a way to bring attention to this very special month for my family and I. In the meantime you can find more information at American Cancer Society or Colon Cancer Alliance.