Mississippi’s longest-serving mayor has announced that she has been undergoing treatment for cancer.

Mayor Mary Hawkins-Butler, Madison’s leader of 43 years and the second-longest-serving female mayor in the country, recently announced her breast cancer diagnosis, asking residents for their prayers.

In an exclusive interview with the Madison County Journal, Hawkins-Butler shared her journey, revealing that she began experiencing symptoms over a year ago while caring for her husband, Jim Butler, who passed away in August 2023.

Delaying her own care to prioritize her husband’s, she finally visited a doctor this past August and spent five weeks receiving treatment at the Mayo Clinic.

Click here to read more from the Madison County Journal.