WHEREAS, each year, an estimated 1,551 North Carolinians are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and 1,348 die of the disease; and
WHEREAS, pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers, ranking as the fourth-leading cause of cancer death in both North Carolina and across the United States; and
WHEREAS, up to 30-percent of cases of pancreatic cancer are thought to be preventable; and
WHEREAS, chronic pancreatitis, often linked to long-term alcohol consumption, smoking, and repeat incidents of acute pancreatitis, increases the risk of pancreatic cancer by 2 to 3 times that of the general population; and
WHEREAS, there is currently no therapeutic cure for pancreatitis or pancreatic cancer; and
WHEREAS, Durham-based medical and pharmaceutical researchers, including Lamassu Pharma, LLC., are currently developing a viable therapeutic treatment for acute pancreatitis that could save hundreds of thousands of lives by reducing the risk for developing pancreatic cancer via pancreatitis; and
WHEREAS, the health and wellbeing of the residents of North Carolina are enhanced as a direct result of increased awareness of pancreatic cancer, and the work being done to prevent and treat the disease;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, ROY COOPER, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim November, 2021, as “PANCREATIC CANCER AWARENESS MONTH” in North Carolina, and commend its observance to all citizens.