FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. (October 2, 2023) – Just about everybody knows somebody who has been affected by breast cancer. While delivering remarks from the Flagler County Board of Commissioners on Monday, Chairman Greg Hansen said he now counts his wife Linda among the breast cancer survivors here in Flagler County.
It’s a disease that affects both women and men, and county commissioners sat still as Flagler County Fire Rescue Captain Gil Aspinwall stepped to the podium, during the proclamation recognizing October as breast cancer awareness month, surrounded by members of the AdventHealth Palm Coast Foundation and Pink Army committee.
Sharing his story, he was candid about the impact it has had on his life after finding a lump in 2017 and being diagnosed with triple-positive breast cancer. His takeaway message – if you feel something, say something.
“I just expected after 26 years in firefighting I was going to get something. I just never expected it to be breast cancer. We’re more prone to lung issues, prostate cancer, stuff like that,” he said.
“I’ve had five surgeries to date, two of those were reconstructive as well as a year of chemo. Always, always check yourself, and come forward.”
Whether it’s through the Pink on Parade 5K set for October 8th to help Flagler County residents in need of screenings and diagnostic services or another cause, recognizing survivors and early detection is important to Aspinwall.
“Almost every family has been affected by cancer in one way or the other. It’s obviously unusual for males to get it, so it was a shock to me and my family and everybody. Usually when I tell people, the first thing guys do is grab their chest, start feeling their chest. That’s what happened with mine,” he said.
“Go to your primary, get checked out. Guys have egos, we don’t want to go to the doctor, we don’t want to tell anybody. Tell somebody. I found mine it was stage 1, grade 2, so I found it early enough that I was able to treat it.”
FAST FACTS: The American Cancer Society estimates for breast cancer in men in the United States for 2023 are:
About 2,800 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed
About 530 men will die from breast cancer
“Breast cancer is about 100 times less common among White men than among White women. Â It is about 70 times less common among Black men than Black women. As in Black women, Black men with breast cancer tend to have a worse prognosis (outlook). For men, the lifetime risk of getting breast cancer is about 1 in 833.”
“Mortality trends: The breast cancer death rate among females peaked in 1989 and has since declined by 43% as of 2020, mainly because of earlier detection through screening mammography, as well as increased breast cancer awareness and improved treatment. This decrease translates to approximately 460,000 fewer breast cancer deaths during this time period than would have been expected in the absence of this progress. However, mortality rates in Black women remain about 40% higher than in White women, despite lower incidence,” according to the American Cancer Society’s 2023 Cancer Facts & Figures Report.Â
