[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 81 (Friday, June 17, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1257]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    INTRODUCTION OF THE PROSTATE CANCER RESEARCH AND PREVENTION ACT 
                            REAUTHORIZATION

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                         HON. FRANK A. LoBIONDO

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 16, 2005

  Mr. LoBIONDO. Mr. Speaker, I rise here today in support of the 
``Prostate Cancer Research and Prevention Act.'' This important piece 
of legislation will reauthorize through 2010 important programs at the 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH) which will help increase awareness and 
surveillance of prostate cancer, address the serious issues of prostate 
cancer screening, and help unlock the mysteries of prostate cancer 
through research.
  Prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer found in 
American men. The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be 
about 232,090 new cases of prostate cancer in the United States in 2005 
and that approximately 30,350 men will die of this disease. It is the 
second leading cause of cancer death in men, behind only lung cancer.
  While these statistics remain alarming, the death rate for prostate 
cancer is actually decreasing in all racial and ethnic groups. While 1 
man in 6 will still be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his 
lifetime, only 1 man in 33 will now die of this disease. More men, 
especially African-American men and others in high risk categories, are 
being made aware of the risk of prostate cancer and being encouraged to 
take steps to ensure early detection.
  This awareness and action is critically important when dealing with 
all cancers, but especially cancer of the prostate--which grows slowly 
and without symptoms and is all too often undetected until in its most 
advanced and incurable stage. That is why reauthorizing the ``Prostate 
Cancer Research and Prevention Act'' is so important.
  Reauthorizing the ``Prostate Cancer Research and Prevention Act'' 
will allow the CDC to continue to comprehensively evaluate the 
effectiveness of various screening strategies for prostate cancer and 
to further expand public information and education programs about the 
issues regarding the disease. It will also allow the CDC to continue to 
make grants to States and local health departments to ensure that this 
information is being thoroughly spread, especially among communities 
and groups where the risk is highest. The bill also extends the 
authority of the National Cancer Institute at the NIH to conduct and 
support basic and clinical research to expand the understanding of the 
cause of prostate cancer and to ultimately find a cure for the disease. 
Reauthorizing these important programs will help continue the rising 
trend towards awareness and action and hopefully result in even fewer 
untimely deaths.
  The American Cancer Society, the Men's Health Network and the Dean 
and Betty Gallo Prostate Cancer Center at the Cancer Institute of New 
Jersey join me in supporting this reauthorization of the ``Prostate 
Cancer Research and Prevention Act.'' These organizations know first 
hand the important roles education, awareness and research play, and I 
applaud each of them for their dedication to battling this disease.
  As National Men's Health Week draws to a close and we prepare to 
celebrate Father's Day on Sunday, I encourage each of you to reflect on 
the serious health threat that prostate cancer continues to pose for 
men across the country--including the men closest and most important to 
each of us, and urge my colleagues in the House to support the 
``Prostate Cancer Research and Prevention Act.''

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