[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 18336]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     INTRODUCTION OF BREAST CANCER AWARENESS COMMEMORATIVE COIN ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, December 9, 2013

  Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Speaker, last month we 
recognized Breast Cancer Awareness Month--acknowledging the toll the 
disease takes on individuals and families, and the importance of 
continued research and awareness efforts. Since 1989, thanks to earlier 
detection, increased understanding, and improved treatment, the death 
rates for breast cancer have continued to decrease. Yet breast cancer 
remains the second leading cause of cancer death in women, with one in 
36 women dying from the disease. While breast cancer used to be 
considered a disease of aging, recent trends show that more aggressive 
forms of the disease have been increasingly diagnosed in younger women. 
Just this year, it is estimated that 232,340 women will be diagnosed 
with and 39,620 women will die of cancer of the breast in the United 
States.
  We need to do more to tackle this disease. Each year roughly $16.5 
billion is spent in the United States on breast cancer treatment, 
according to the National Cancer Institute estimates. While the federal 
government remains the largest funder of breast cancer research in the 
United States, in 2012, the National Cancer Institute reduced funding 
by almost $30 million and the Department of Defense Breast Cancer 
Research Program grants decreased more than 22 percent from 2010 
funding levels.
  Additional private sector support will help us find a cure for breast 
cancer even faster. That is why my colleague Representative Aaron 
Schock and I are introducing the Breast Cancer Awareness Commemorative 
Coin Act. Additional private sector support will help us find a cure 
for breast cancer even faster. Proceeds from the sale of the coin will 
benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and Susan G. Komen for 
the Cure. These two organizations have spent more than $450 million and 
$790 million, respectively, on research funding. But more needs to be 
done to find better treatments and a cure.
  Our mothers, our sisters, our daughters, cannot afford to wait. I 
encourage you to support this new legislation.

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