[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 156 (Friday, October 31, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2192]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            COMMITTED TO PROGRESS IN FIGHTING BREAST CANCER

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                          HON. RUBEN HINOJOSA

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 30, 2003

  Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker I rise today to acknowledge the importance 
of breast cancer awareness. This year in the U.S. alone, more than 
200,000 women and men will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and over 
40,000 will die from this devastating disease. Every 3 minutes a woman 
is diagnosed with breast cancer, and every 13 minutes a women dies from 
this disease.
  We know that early detection of breast cancer saves lives. 
Mammography screening remains the best tool available to detect breast 
cancer at its earliest, most treatable stages. The death rate from 
breast cancer among women in the U.S. has been decreasing by about 2 
percent annually during the past decade, suggesting that public 
awareness, early detection, and improved therapies are having an impact 
on the disease. In the past 20 years, the percentage of women in the 
U.S. receiving mammograms has grown from 13 percent to 60 percent--a 
significant difference. But we still have a long way to go. Mortality 
rates in some minority populations have not declined at the same rate 
as it has in other populations, and we must ensure that all Americans, 
regardless of race or ethnicity, have access to quality breast health 
and breast cancer care.
  We must continue to fund the programs that enable progress in winning 
the war on breast cancer, prioritize increased NIH funding, move the 
reauthorization of the Mammography Quality Standards Act through 
conference intact, and take action on the 10+ pieces of legislation 
that have been introduced during the 108th Congress to better the lives 
of breast cancer victims and survivors, fund research and promote 
awareness. The 72 people that will be diagnosed with breast cancer 
today are counting on us.

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