[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 144 (Monday, September 26, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1723-E1724]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING SEPTEMBER 22 AS INTERNATIONAL CHRONIC MYELOGENOUS LEUKEMIA 
                             AWARENESS DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. LEONARD LANCE

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 26, 2011

  Mr. LANCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize September 22 as 
International CML Awareness Day.
  The date September 22 symbolizes the genetic mutation of chromosomes 
9 and 22 that causes the rare blood cancer chronic myelogenous 
leukemia, or CML.

[[Page E1724]]

  Not long ago CML, cancer of the white blood cells, resulted in a 
rapid death after the initial diagnosis. But today, thanks to 
innovative therapies, CML is more frequently managed as a chronic 
condition.
  Within the past decade, as various drug therapies to treat CML became 
available, five-year survival rates increased from 50 percent to nearly 
90 percent. Although 28,000 Americans currently live with CML, that 
number is estimated to increase to as many as 250,000 Americans by 
2040.
  However, as with many rare diseases, progress in the development of 
treatments for CML brings with it a variety of challenges--for 
patients, physicians and the government. Treatments are expensive, and 
before recent changes in the law, some patients who managed the disease 
as a chronic condition exhausted their lifetime health insurance 
maximums. And genetic mutations cause patients to find previously 
effective treatments becoming ineffective.
  Earlier this week, the Rare Disease Caucus--of which I am a 
congressional co-chair--had the opportunity to see the faces of CML up-
close and personal.
  From Poughkeepsie, New York, to Ann Arbor, Michigan, to Lincoln, 
Nebraska, we heard the emotional stories, the extraordinary hardship, 
the hope and the faith that someday we may find a cure for CML.
  The exact cause of the genetic changes behind CML is unknown. 
Continued research toward a cure and increased awareness remain vital 
to fighting the disease and improving the quality of life for those 
already living with it.
  I applaud the goals and ideals of CML Awareness Day. I strongly 
support promoting research and ensuring access to treatment that 
someday may lead toward a cure.

                          ____________________