Washington, D.C. – September 19, 2011 – Thousands of cancer survivors and their families will rally at events in all 50 states this week to call on Congress to protect funding for cancer research. At each event, advocates will collect messages of hope for a future without cancer that will be delivered to their members of Congress in Washington, D.C. at a national event on Sept. 27.
The rallies have been organized by local volunteers of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) as part of its national Celebrate with Action campaign commemorating the organization’s 10 years of saving lives from cancer through public policy at the federal, state and local level.
“The hundreds of events across the country this week will ensure that lawmakers hear the voices of people with cancer and their loved ones who are calling for more federal funding for research,” said John R. Seffrin, PhD, chief executive officer of ACS CAN, the advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society. “Now is not the time to weaken funding for cancer research that can save lives. In fact, now is the time to make investments that will help deliver more potential breakthroughs from research labs directly to patients.”
More than 250 local events in all 50 states are planned throughout the week. They will include events at state capitols, cancer research centers, hospitals, state fairs, schools, and American Cancer Society Hope Lodge facilities. Today an event at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will celebrate the role of patients, survivors and caregivers in cancer research and care. In Michigan, local volunteers are sponsoring an art contest and silent auction. In Pittsburgh, PA nearly 1,000 supporters are expected to rally on the rooftop of a local hotel. Across Florida, volunteers are launching a whistle stop tour that will last the week, stopping at cancer centers and hospitals throughout the state. For a full listing of local events, visit www.fightcancer.org/celebrate.
At each event this week, volunteers will collect stories of personal milestones reached by cancer patients and survivors thanks to cancer research. These milestones – celebrating another birthday, attending a child’s wedding or simply enjoying one more holiday meal with one’s family – have been made possible because of research breakthroughs that are enabling more people to live with cancer.
Jenna Langer, a cancer survivor from New Ulm, MN, says that thanks to cancer research she was able to graduate from college with honors – on time – with her peers. Thelma Jones, a survivor from Washington, D.C., says that because of cancer research she has enjoyed many wonderful milestones from embracing her first grandson to giving hope and inspiration to others who are going through similar journeys. Bill Pressly, from Crossville, TN, says he heard his grandson sing Happy Birthday to him, five years after surviving a Stage 4 Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma diagnosis.
Volunteers will deliver nearly 100,000 similar milestones from across the country next week to members of Congress during ACS CAN’s National Leadership Summit and Lobby Day in Washington, D.C. The milestones will also be on display on the National Mall in front of the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Sept. 27.
“By sharing thousands of personal milestones already reached in the fight against cancer we will demonstrate to Congress the progress at stake if federal funding for research is not protected,” said Christopher W. Hansen, president of ACS CAN. “We know there will be reductions in federal spending, but when it comes to deciding what are the most important priorities, we believe Congress will agree that a full-scale effort against cancer, a disease that kills more than half a million Americans every year, should be high on the list. For cancer patients it’s a matter of life or death.”
Federal investments in cancer research have helped to make significant progress against cancer. Since the mid-1970s, five-year survival rates for all cancers have improved from 50 percent to 68 percent. Cancer incidence and mortality rates have been declining since 1991, resulting in nearly 12 million cancer survivors in the United States.
Despite the encouraging progress against the disease, cancer continues to kill 1,500 people in this country every day –more than 570,000 each year. In 2011, it is estimated that nearly 1.6 million people in the United States will be diagnosed with cancer.
For more information about ACS CAN and Celebrate with Action events, please visit www.fightcancer.org.
About ACS CAN
ACS CAN, the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society, supports evidence-based policy and legislative solutions designed to eliminate cancer as a major health problem. ACS CAN works to encourage elected officials and candidates to make cancer a top national priority. ACS CAN gives ordinary people extraordinary power to fight cancer with the training and tools they need to make their voices heard. For more information, visit www.fightcancer.org.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Nicole Bender or Steve Weiss
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
Phone: (202) 661-5773 or (202) 661-5711
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
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