[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 148 (Thursday, September 6, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1213-E1214]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          RECOGNIZING NATIONAL PROSTATE CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ROGER WILLIAMS

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 6, 2018

  Mr. WILLIAMS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize September as National 
Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Prostate cancer is the most commonly 
diagnosed cancer in American men and the third leading cause of cancer 
death behind lung and colon cancer.
   While I am a survivor of this potentially deadly disease, not 
everyone is so fortunate. In my home state of Texas, an estimated 
12,600 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed, and an estimated 
1,830 deaths will occur in 2018. Nationally, 164,690 men will be 
diagnosed with prostate cancer and, tragically, one man every 18 
minutes, or roughly 29,430 men will die this year due to the disease.
   While 1 in 9 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in their 
lifetime, certain groups are at higher risk for developing the disease: 
Men with family history are twice as likely to develop the disease, 
African Americans are 1.7 times more likely to be diagnosed in their 
lives, and Veterans who are exposed to herbicides such as Agent Orange 
are at an increased risk for developing an aggressive form of the 
disease.
   We can lower these numbers--education regarding early detection 
strategies is critical to saving lives and preserving and protecting 
our families. If caught early, prostate cancer has a five-year survival 
rate of nearly 100 percent. However, for late stage prostate cancer the 
five year survival rate is 29 percent.
   All men are at risk for prostate cancer and I encourage the men of 
this nation to participate in routine prostate cancer screenings. Your 
life is too valuable to avoid them.

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