It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month nationwide, but in our state, it's also Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) Awareness Month.

It's the governor's way of warning all of us about the most aggressive and lethal form of breast cancer. The National Cancer Institute says IBC accounts for 1 to 5 percent of all breast cancer.

Washington was the first state to create IBC awareness month and now three other states - Michigan, Florida and Illinois - have followed our state's lead.

It all began with one man on a mission.

"I am one man on a mission against a silent killer, said Phil Willingham, whose mission began on Dec. 11, 2005.

"Right now it's kind of emotional,. I lost my wife of Dec. 11 of 2005 to this IBC. When she first contacted IBC we didn't know what it was," said Willingham with tears streaming down his right cheek.

In a 2006 KOMO special report, we called IBC "the silent killer" because with this type of breast cancer, there is no lump, and it almost never shows up on a mammogram and most doctors misdiagnose it. That makes IBC silent and deadly.

"That's my goal to get as many people to know about it so we can save lives," said Willingham.

Marilyn Willingham's first doctor thought she had a bug bite on her breast and treated her for an infection. By the time she tried antibiotics and got the correct diagnosis, it was too late.

By the time IBC attacks the breast, it's already spread throughout the body. That's why immediate diagnosis is critical.

With IBC, a breast will swell overnight.It can be red and hot to the touch. It can present with persistent itching and a thickening of the breast tissue sometimes dimpled with an orange peel-like texture. Nipples can invert or look as if they've been pushed inward and some patients experience severe breast pain.

Phil and Marilyn had never heard of IBC. They thought there was only one kind of breast cancer. They had no idea it was so deadly.

After Marilyn's death, Phil vowed to warn as many people, men and women, as he could. He made contact with every state lawmaker or their staff and even traveled to meet Washington, D.C. to meet with U.S. Senator Patty Murray.

Phil got the ear of breast cancer survivor Gov. Christine Gregoire. For the last three years, the governor has named October IBC Awareness Month.

Now Phil's on another mission to honor his wife, whose story has helped educate patients and doctors nationwide.

He wants an IBC exam room dedicated to Marilyn at the only IBC Clinic in the world at MD Anderson Medical Center in Houston.

This devoted husband, father, grandfather and former football coach knows it will help other families, and allow him to do one last thing for his bride.

"Just like in a ball game I scored the touchdown now I can go on and live my life," said Willingham.

Phil needs to raise $20,000 in donations to get that exam room dedication. If you'd like to help you can donate to:

Marilyn's Fund for IBC Research
P.O. Box 4486
Houston, TX 77210-4486

You can also call the Morgan Welch Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research Program and Clinic at 713-792-4121 or 877-MDA-6789.

More information:

The IBC Foundation