[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 122 (Thursday, July 19, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S5104]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      REMEMBERING MARLENE McCARTHY

 Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, Rhode Island has lost a 
tireless champion in the fight against breast cancer, Marlene McCarthy. 
Marlene's dedication to this cause was well known throughout Rhode 
Island and across Capitol Hill.
  Marlene cofounded the Rhode Island Breast Cancer Coalition in 1992 
and represented Rhode Island on the National Breast Cancer Coalition's 
board of directors and executive committee. Under her leadership, the 
Rhode Island Breast Cancer Coalition established a helpline for breast 
cancer patients and a Breast Cancer Resource Center and provided 
countless support services to Rhode Islanders facing this terrible 
disease.
  Her advocacy was not limited to Rhode Island. Marlene regularly 
visited me in Washington, DC, advocating for stronger Federal funding 
for breast cancer research and broader access to the best possible 
breast cancer care. At Marlene's urging, I introduced the Accelerating 
the End of Breast Cancer Act, legislation to set a goal of eradicating 
breast cancer by 2020.
  The driving force behind Marlene's hard work and boundless 
persistence was her dream of a future free from the scourge of breast 
cancer for her granddaughters. It is in Marlene's memory that I pledge 
to continue to fight for policies that will make her dream a reality.
  I offer my condolences to Marlene's family and to the breast cancer 
community. Marlene's legacy will live on through the family and loved 
ones she has left behind, the continuing work of the Rhode Island 
Breast Cancer Coalition, and the countless people she inspired through 
her advocacy and compassion. She will be missed.

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