[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 148 (Tuesday, October 2, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12447-S12448]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        NATIONAL MAMMOGRAPHY DAY

  Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 343, submitted 
earlier today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 343) designating October 19, 2007, as 
     ``National Mammography Day.''

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)
 Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, today I am submitting a resolution 
designating October 19, 2007, as ``National Mammography Day.'' This is 
the 15th

[[Page S12448]]

straight year I have introduced such legislation, and I am proud to say 
that on each occasion the Senate has shown its support for the fight 
against breast cancer by approving the resolution.
  Each year, as I prepare to introduce this resolution, I review the 
latest information from the American Cancer Society about breast 
cancer. For the year 2007, it is estimated that nearly 178,480 women 
will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and 40,460 women will die 
of this disease.
  The first several times I introduced this resolution, I commented on 
how gloomy the statistics surrounding breast cancer were. While too 
many of our loved ones still die from breast cancer each year, there 
are some numbers these days that give us hope in our persistent 
struggle to defeat this disease. As I mentioned last year, the trend 
over time is that the number of deaths from breast cancer is actually 
stable or falling from year to year. According to the American Cancer 
Society, the death rate from breast cancer in women has decreased since 
1990: between 1975-1990, the death rate increased by 0.4 percent; 
between 1990-2004, the death rate decreased by 2.2 percent annually.
  This decline in the breast cancer mortality rate has been attributed 
to both improvements in breast cancer treatment as well as early 
detection from mammograms and other screening methods. New digital 
techniques make the process of mammography much more rapid and precise 
than before. In addition, early detection of breast cancer continues to 
result in extremely favorable outcomes: 98 percent of women with 
localized breast cancer will survive 5 years or longer. Government 
programs will provide free mammograms to those who can't afford them, 
as well as Medicaid eligibility for treatment if breast cancer is 
diagnosed. Information about treatment of breast cancer with surgery, 
chemotherapy, and radiation therapy has exploded, reflecting enormous 
research advances in this disease. With all of these advances in 
research, screening and treatment, a diagnosis of breast cancer is not 
a death sentence--all of us encounter long-term survivors of breast 
cancer almost daily, whether we realize it or not.
  Recently, there has been discussion among scientists regarding the 
best and most appropriate screening tool for breast cancer--traditional 
mammography or more advanced technology like magnetic resonance 
imaging, MRI. In addition, newspapers have been filled with discussions 
over whether the scientific evidence actually supports the conclusion 
that periodic screening mammography saves lives. For those of us who 
are neither physicians nor scientists in this highly technical area, we 
look to the experts. The American Cancer Society, the National Cancer 
Institute, and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force all continue to 
recommend periodic screening mammography.
  As for mammography versus MRI's, in 2007 an expert panel convened by 
the American Cancer Society released new recommendations for the use of 
MRI for women at increased risk for breast cancer. Essentially, the 
Society recommended annual screening using MRI in addition to 
mammography for women at high lifetime risk, 20 to 25 percent or 
greater of developing breast cancer. Women with moderately increased 
risk of developing the disease, 15 to 20 percent lifetime risk, should 
discuss the option of adding an MRI to their annual mammogram with 
their physician. Women that do not fall into the high-risk or moderate-
risk categories for developing breast cancer have no need to supplement 
their mammogram with an MRI.
  I know that some women don't have annual mammograms because of either 
fear or forgetfulness. It is only human nature for some women to avoid 
mammograms because they are afraid of what the test will reveal. To 
those who are fearful, I would say that if you have periodic routine 
mammograms, and the latest one comes out positive, even before you have 
any symptoms or have found a lump on self-examination, you have reason 
to be optimistic, not pessimistic. Such early-detected breast cancers 
are highly treatable.
  Then there is forgetfulness. I certainly understand how difficult it 
is to remember to do something that only comes around once each year. I 
would suggest that this is where National Mammography Day comes in. On 
that day, let's make sure that each woman we know picks a specific date 
on which to get a mammogram each year, a date that she won't forget: a 
child's birthday, an anniversary, perhaps even the day her taxes are 
due. On National Mammography Day, let's ask our loved ones: pick one of 
these dates, fix it in your mind along with a picture of your child, 
your wedding, or another symbol of that date, and promise yourself to 
get a mammogram on that date every year. Once you pick a date, call 
your health care provider and make an appointment. If you have access 
to the internet, go the American Cancer Society's website and sign up 
for the mammogram reminder service--they'll send you an e-mail to 
remind you about the date you picked. Do it for yourself and for the 
others that love you and want you to be part of their lives for as long 
as possible.
  And to those women who are reluctant to have a mammogram, once again 
I say let National Mammography Day serve as a reminder to discuss this 
question each year with your physician. New scientific studies that are 
published and new mammography techniques that are developed may affect 
your decision on this matter from one year to the next. I encourage you 
to keep an open mind and not to feel that a decision at one point in 
time commits you irrevocably to a particular course of action for the 
indefinite future.
  Mr. President, I urge my colleagues to join me in the ongoing fight 
against breast cancer by cosponsoring and voting for this resolution to 
designate October 19, 2007, as ``National Mammography Day''.
  Mr. BROWN. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, 
the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the 
table, en bloc, and any statements relating thereto be printed in the 
Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 343) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 343

       Whereas, according to the American Cancer Society, in 2007, 
     178,480 women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer 
     and 40,460 women will die from that disease;
       Whereas it is estimated that about 2,000,000 women were 
     diagnosed with breast cancer in the 1990s, and that in nearly 
     500,000 of those cases the cancer resulted in death;
       Whereas approximately 3,000,000 women in the United States 
     are living with breast cancer, about 2,300,000 have been 
     diagnosed with the disease, and an estimated 1,000,000 do not 
     yet know they have the disease;
       Whereas African-American women suffer a 36 percent greater 
     mortality rate from breast cancer than White women and more 
     than a 100 percent greater mortality rate from breast cancer 
     than women from Hispanic, Asian, and American Indian 
     populations;
       Whereas the risk of breast cancer increases with age, with 
     a woman at age 70 having twice as much of a chance of 
     developing the disease as a woman at age 50;
       Whereas at least 90 percent of the women who get breast 
     cancer have no family history of the disease;
       Whereas mammograms, when operated professionally at a 
     certified facility, can provide safe screening and early 
     detection of breast cancer in many women;
       Whereas mammography is an excellent method for early 
     detection of localized breast cancer, which has a 5-year 
     survival rate of 98 percent;
       Whereas the National Cancer Institute and the American 
     Cancer Society continue to recommend periodic mammograms; and
       Whereas the National Breast Cancer Coalition recommends 
     that each woman and her health care provider make an 
     individual decision about mammography: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) designates October 19, 2007, as ``National Mammography 
     Day''; and
       (2) encourages the people of the United States to observe 
     the day with appropriate programs and activities.

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