Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia Encourages Georgians to Support New Prostate Cancer Awareness License Plate

ATLANTA, Feb. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia congratulates the Georgia Prostate Cancer Coalition on receiving their official prostate cancer awareness license plate.  After several years of campaigning spearheaded by the Georgia Prostate Cancer Coalition, and $25,000 later, it was recently announced that Georgia would get a special license plate dedicated to raising awareness of a disease which afflicts 1 in 6 men in the U.S.

Georgia ranks ninth in highest estimated prostate cancer-related deaths according to the American Cancer Society. This is an increase from 2011, when Georgia ranked 11th.

"Our goal is to educate men about the second leading cause of cancer death among men," said Frank Catroneo, of the Georgia Prostate Cancer Coalition. "There were nearly 7,400 new cases of prostate cancer diagnosed in Georgia last year and nearly 1,100 men who died.  Awareness and education are critical to combatting prostate cancer and we hope this license plate will help in the fight."

As one of the biggest supporters of the license plate initiative, Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia showed its support with parallel campaigns to the license plate initiative such as the Georgia Pledge Campaign in 2010, and "Who Do You Wear Blue For?" last September – all benefiting the Georgia Prostate Cancer Coalition.

"We are ecstatic to share in the good news," said Shelly Glenn of Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia.  "It's been a journey and we are so proud to be part of the Georgia Prostate Cancer Coalition's initiative.  This license plate is just one more way we can educate Georgians about this very serious disease."

The Georgia Prostate Cancer plate, which will be available by the end of the summer, is $35 and proceeds will be used to offer free screenings to unemployed and uninsured men in Georgia. Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia offers their continued support for the Georgia Prostate Cancer Coalition and encourages all Georgians to share in this great accomplishment by purchasing a license plate and raising awareness for prostate cancer.

For more information on prostate cancer, visit www.curingprostatecancer.com.  To show your support to the Georgia Prostate Cancer Coalition, please visit http://www.georgiapcc.org.  

About Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia
An affiliate of Vantage Oncology, Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia was founded in 1984 and has earned a reputation for being one of the country's top cancer treatment and research facilities because of its commitment to quality, use of the latest radiation technology and focus on research that enables it to treat men and women with different types of cancer, including breast, prostate, lung, colon, lymphatic and others. Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia has treated more than 14,000 men for prostate cancer and has compiled its observations of these men, both before and after treatment, into one of the largest computerized databases on prostate cancer in the United States. For more information, visit www.RCOG.com.

KNOW YOUR RISK FACTORS

• Age is the most important risk factor for prostate cancer.  Prostate cancer incidence rates increase in men until roughly age 70 and decline thereafter.  More than 65 percent of all prostate cancers are diagnosed in men over the age of 65, and the average age of diagnosis in the U.S. is 69 years.
• Race/Ethnicity is a factor as African-American men have a higher incidence of prostate cancer and are more likely to die from the disease than white men in every age group.  Incidence and death rates for prostate cancer are lower among men of other racial and ethnic groups than among white and African-American men.
• Family history and genetics can increase risk of developing prostate cancer, as men are two to three times more likely to develop the disease if they have an immediate family member with the disease and are three to five times more likely to be diagnosed if more than one family member has been diagnosed with prostate cancer.  The risk is further increased if prostate cancer is diagnosed in family members at an age younger than 55.
• Other potential risks include nutrition and physical activity, medications, hormones as well as geographic factors like sunlight and vitamin D.

SOURCE Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia