Pittsburgh City Council Brings Vital Attention to Overlooked Asbestos Cancer

Wednesday September 17, 12:18 pm ET

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PITTSBURGH, Sept. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Helping to raise awareness of an overlooked cancer that strikes a heavy toll in the Pittsburgh area, the Pittsburgh City Council yesterday proclaimed Friday, September 26, 2003 as "Mesothelioma Awareness Day." Mesothelioma, caused by asbestos exposure, is a highly aggressive tumor that attacks the linings of the lungs or stomach. According to the City Council's proclamation, "there is no known cure and even the best treatments usually have only very limited effect." As a result, "it almost always causes death very rapidly and with extreme pain."

Responsible for persuading the City Council of the importance of the Proclamation was the Pittsburgh Chapter of The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (MARF). MARF is the national nonprofit organization whose mission is to eradicate mesothelioma as a life-ending disease. Pittsburgh Chapter members Nancy Buszinski, Alice Steigerwald, Roberta Bannister, Kathy Willis, Colleen McDowell and Heidi Simon, all of whom lost a spouse or close relative to the disease, were present to accept the Proclamation.

According to Ms. Buszinski, "Like most people, my husband and I had never heard of this disease before he was diagnosed. He was a welder for 14 years here in Pittsburgh, and we had no idea that the asbestos he came in contact with every day could cause such a horrible cancer. We sought the best treatment available in the country, but he died just 17 months after he was diagnosed, and suffered dreadfully. To stop this from happening to other people, we need awareness, and then we need funding for the research necessary to develop effective treatments. The City's proclamation today is an important step in this direction."

As another important step, MARF's Pittsburgh Chapter will be hosting the 2nd Annual Dance for Me So Others Might Live, on September 27 at Riverview Park. Proceeds will go to MARF for mesothelioma research.

For more information, contact MARF Pittsburgh Chapter head Nancy Buszinski, 412-276-0702 (nbusz1@hotmail.com) or Executive Director, Christopher E. Hahn, 805-560-8942 (c-hahn@marf.org), or visit MARF's website http://www.marf.org.

** POSTED SEPTEMBER 18, 2003 **