[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 100 (Tuesday, June 17, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Page S5689]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              11TH ANNUAL CONGRESSIONAL HEALTH SCREENINGS

  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I would like to bring to the Chamber's 
attention the 11th Annual Congressional Health Screenings and I would 
like to commend my colleague, Senator Shelby, for his leadership at 
this event. The Congressional Health Screenings occur each year during 
National Men's Health Week the week prior to Father's Day. I encourage 
all of my colleagues and their staffs to participate in these 
screenings. As U.S. Senators, we must set an example and not only 
encourage healthy habits but practice them as well. This year's program 
offers a number of convenient screenings, including prostate specific 
antigen, PSA, cholesterol, glucose, blood pressure, and body fat tests, 
as well as health education materials. The purpose of this event is to 
increase our awareness of health issues and to help develop 
comprehensive strategies to improve our health and that of our 
families.
  The state of men's health has become a national crisis. Because of 
poor health habits, lack of health insurance, failure to seek timely 
medical attention, and dangerous occupations, men are afflicted with 
more maladies and die younger than women. Today, men are living 
approximately 5 fewer years than that of their female counterparts and 
are dying at higher rates for 9 out of the Nation's top 10 causes of 
death. This includes death from cancer, diabetes, suicide, accidents, 
and diseases of the heart, kidney, and liver. When speaking about 
cancer, it is important to note that one in two men in his lifetime 
will be diagnosed with cancer and one in six will be diagnosed with 
prostate cancer.
  The Men's Health Network, along with Women Against Prostate Cancer, 
use National Men's Health Week to emphasize the fact that prostate 
health issues and prostate cancer is not merely a ``man's disease.'' 
Each year thousands of wives, daughters, sisters, and friends are 
impacted--often in devastating ways--by the loss and/or suffering of a 
man from prostate health issues. Early and regular screenings 
significantly increase the chance of early detection and successful 
treatment.
  I am pleased to report that we are steadily making progress. Last 
year during September's Prostate Awareness Month, Men's Health Network 
and the Washington Redskins held a prostate screening at FedEx Field in 
Landover, MD. Over 300 people gathered to help their fathers, 
grandfathers, sons, uncles, and friends move one step closer toward a 
happier, healthier future. Five of the gentlemen screened had 
potentially dangerous PSA readings.
  There is no better time than now to become more proactive with regard 
to men's health. Women are 100-percent more likely than men to 
regularly visit their doctors for annual examinations and to seek out 
preventative services. Half of the Nation's elderly widows living in 
poverty did not face economic hardships before the deaths of their 
husbands. Men between the ages of 45 and 54 are three times more likely 
to die of heart attacks, 1.5 times more likely to die from heart 
disease, and 1.5 times more likely to die from cancer than women.
  Half of the estimated 54,000 men diagnosed this year with colon 
cancer will die from it. Over 185,000 men are expected to develop 
prostate cancer in 2008--almost 15 percent of these cases are expected 
to be terminal. Preventive measures, such as prostate specific antigen 
exams, blood pressure and cholesterol screens, and routine self-testing 
exams for these and other types of cancers that target men can lead to 
invaluable early detection that will increase the survival rates for 
such cancers by almost 100 percent.
  In addition, I must reiterate the need for an Office of Men's Health 
in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to tackle many of 
these aforementioned issues. Last year, I introduced S. 640, the Men's 
Health Act, which would establish such an office. The Office on Women's 
Health in the department does a fantastic job of saving the lives of 
thousands of women and improving the lives of many more. Similarly, an 
Office of Men's Health would provide a support network that would reach 
out to all men on issues related to men's health.
  In closing, I thank the Men's Health Network for hosting the 11th 
Annual Congressional Health Screenings. I hope that my colleagues and 
their staffs will take this unique opportunity to not only better their 
own health, but to encourage the people around them to do the same.

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