WOODS CROSS - In a recent city council meeting, the Woods Cross City Council voted to recognize November as Lung Cancer Awareness Month. The prominence of this decision may cause some curiosity among residents: with so many dangerous cancers and other diseases, why does lung cancer need an awareness month?

The answer comes from the data, and proposition collected and proposed by Woods Cross City Mayor Ryan Westergard. According to the proposal, not only is lung cancer prominent and dangerous, but it is also “the leading cause of cancer death among men and women in the United States and Utah, accounting for more deaths than colon cancer, breast cancer, and prostate cancer combined.”

Even though the technology exists to recognize and effectively diagnose lung cancer in its early stages, many at high risk don’t get screened early enough to save lives. Much of this is due, in large part, to a stigma surrounding lung cancer, which is caused, in many cases by harmful activities like smoking. That’s not the only cause, however, and the awareness surrounding this subversive and dangerous form of cancer needs to be raised.

For instance, Westergard’s proposal states, “Lung cancer in individuals who never smoked is the 7th leading cause of cancer-related death and accounts for 17,000-26,000 deaths in the US every year.” The data also states that the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers is the harmful gas radon. Radon is a natural byproduct of uranium decay in soil and can get trapped in dangerous amounts in some homes, which is why regular screenings and detection are advised. 

As opposed to other well-known cancers, lung cancer research has been severely lacking leaving questions about genetic propensity, other causes, and treatments unanswered. In this way, Woods Cross’ declaration of recognizing November as Lung Cancer Awareness Month will have an impact in bringing issues surrounding this deadly cancer to the public.