In 2010, lung cancer was the leading cause of cancer death in Minnesota, the United States and the world. Among men, 90 percent of these lung cancer deaths are attributed to smoking. Among women, that number is 80 percent. However, because lung cancer can be caused by secondhand smoke, in addition to smoking, those diagnosed often are not smokers themselves.

Increased awareness of these facts plays a critical role in preventing, diagnosing and treating further lung cancer cases. In that spirit, Governor Dayton has proclaimed the month of November to be Lung Cancer Awareness Month in the state of Minnesota.

Minnesota’s grade-school students are leading the nation in overall math scores, according to “The Nation’s Report Card”, which was released today. Minnesota’s fourth and eighth graders scored significantly higher than the national average, continuing a trend of excellence in both reading and math scores. The high scores are encouraging, but a sense of urgency is created by the fact that Minnesota’s scores remained flat as compared to 2009.