November 17th is World Pancreatic Cancer Day

More people die from pancreatic cancer than breast cancer in the U.S., yet general awareness for the disease is lacking in local communities across the country. Steve Lipshetz and Kelley Fox joined us live on the CBS 58 News at 4 to talk about how the Milwaukee area is trying to raise awareness of the disease. 

The survival rate for pancreatic cancer is only 8-percent. Fox said that when she was diagnosed, she considered it a "death sentence." Now she is a beacon of hope for others who are fighting the disease. Fox said there was no secret to her success, she took the same path to recovery that many others do. 

Lipshetz says that the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network has a bold and aggressive goal to double pancreatic cancer survival by 2020. He says raising awareness, and money, is key to making that goal. 

With the help of the Milwaukee and southeastern Wisconsin communities, the country will see purple this November.  In Milwaukee, the Harley-Davidson sign in front of their headquarters, and the Pfister Hotel will be illuminated in purple all November, and the US Bank Building will be lit in purple from November 14 – 18. General Mitchell International Airport is also joining in by lighting the "MKE" sign in purple. 

Both Lipshetz and Fox invited the public to join them for PurpleLight Milwaukee on November 20: PurpleLight is a gathering of survivors, family and friends who have felt the impact of pancreatic cancer. During the PurpleLight event, there will be a ceremony that includes a reading of names, honoring survivors and remembering those we've lost to pancreatic cancer. The event will be held at the Mitchell Park Domes with registration beginning at 6pm and the event at 7. The Domes will be bathed in purple lights for the gathering.

For more information on the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network in Milwaukee, visit their Facebook page.