[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 176 (Wednesday, November 14, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2411]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 EXPRESSING SENSE OF THE HOUSE THAT THE PRESIDENT SHOULD DECLARE LUNG 
                    CANCER A PUBLIC HEALTH PRIORITY

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                               speech of

                         HON. FRANK A. LoBIONDO

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 13, 2007

  Mr. LoBIONDO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to 
support H. Res. 335, which expresses the sense of the House of 
Representatives with respect to lung cancer as a public health priority 
and the recommendations of the Lung Cancer Progress Review Group of the 
National Cancer Institute. I would also like to take this opportunity 
to thank Rep. Lois Capps for introducing this important resolution and 
for her continued efforts on behalf of those affected by lung cancer.
  As many of us know all too well, lung cancer remains the leading 
cause of cancer death for both men and women in the United States. 
While overall advancements in cancer research, treatment, and detection 
in recent years provide great hope, there is still much to do, 
especially in the field of lung cancer. The 5-year survival rates have 
risen significantly for breast, prostate, and colon cancer, but 
unfortunately, the gains for lung cancer remain modest at best.
  For my family and me, these statistics are all too real. In April 
2006, my father-in-law, Joseph L. Ercole, was diagnosed with non-small 
cell adenoma carcinoma stage Ill-b and 9 months later, on February 11, 
2007, he died from lung cancer. While his story is not unique, it 
brought to my attention the need to shine a spotlight on this disease. 
Clearly, a coordinated and comprehensive research effort, like those 
used to tackle other cancers, is needed to achieve significant 
increases in lung cancer survivability rates and prevent other families 
from suffering the same loss.
  H. Res. 335, like S. Res. 87 passed by the Senate in August, clearly 
states our goals--to have lung cancer declared a public health priority 
and to reduce the lung cancer mortality rate by 50 percent by 2015--and 
a pathway to achieve it. Working together these goals can become 
reality.
  I urge my colleagues in the House to join us in this fight and pass 
H. Res. 335

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