American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network volunteers join more than 100 advocates from across the country for ‘One Voice Against Cancer’ Lobby Day
WASHINGTON, DC – June 15, 2010 — Volunteer advocates from the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) will join cancer patients, survivors and caregivers from 18 other cancer organizations in Washington, DC, this week to urge lawmakers to increase funding for critical cancer research and prevention programs at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other federal agencies. A total of more than 100 advocates are uniting as part of the One Voice Against Cancer (OVAC) lobby day.
“There are 11 million cancer survivors in America today, thanks to past investment in research,” said John R. Seffrin, CEO of the American Cancer Society and advocacy affiliate ACS CAN. “But with an estimated 1.5 million new cancer cases expected in 2010 alone, we need our elected officials to sustain funding for research so we can develop detection tools and treatments for the cancers where we don’t currently have answers and work toward our ultimate goal of eliminating death and suffering related to this disease.”
Now in its 11th year, the OVAC Lobby Day will take place June 16-17 with more than 150 scheduled meetings with Members of Congress and their staff.
Advocates will be talking with their elected officials about OVAC’s funding priorities to:
• Sustain the current level of support for medical research and provide the NIH with $35.2 billion in FY 2011, including $5.8 billion for the NCI and $240 million for the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD)
• Support a funding level of $601 million for key CDC cancer prevention and early detection programs, which provide vital resources to every state for cancer monitoring and surveillance; breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening; state cancer control planning and implementation; and awareness initiatives targeting skin, prostate, ovarian, and blood cancers.
• Provide the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) with $267.3 million in FY 2011 to support Title VIII Nursing Programs, along with an additional $18.6 million to support the Patient Navigator Program to help low-income cancer patients navigate the health care system and overcome barriers to health care.
• Fully fund the Caroline Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Act by providing $30 million in FY 2011 for this program. This funding would support the pediatric cancer programs at NCI, CDC, and the Department of Health and Human Services.
• Support an increase of $495 million for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the FY 2011 Agriculture-FDA appropriations bill. Providing the FDA with the resources it requires to further integrate cutting-edge science will streamline the translation of cancer research from early stage discovery to clinical application.
“As the largest funder of cancer research and cancer control, the federal government holds the key to future breakthroughs in our national fight against this dreaded disease,” said Christopher W. Hansen, president of ACS CAN. “We’re calling on our lawmakers to sustain the funding for programs that already work to prevent cancer or detect it early and make a commitment to research so discovery continues.”
According to the Society, more than 1.5 million people in America will be diagnosed with cancer and another 569,490 will die from the disease in 2010. Cancer remains the leading cause of death for all Americans under the age of 85, claiming the lives of 1,500 people each day.
ACS CAN joins the following health care groups participating in this year’s lobby day: American Academy of Dermatology Association, American Association for Cancer Research, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum, C3: Colorectal Cancer Coalition, Colon Cancer Alliance, ICCCaucus, International Myeloma Foundation, Lance Armstrong Foundation, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Men's Health Network, National Coalition for Cancer Research (NCCR), National Patient Advocate Foundation, Nevada Cancer Institute, Ovarian Cancer National Alliance, Pancreatic Cancer Action Network – PanCAN, Susan G Komen for the Cure Advocacy Alliance, and Us Too International Prostate Cancer Education and Support Network.
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.
One Voice Against Cancer (OVAC), a coalition of more than 40 national and community-based organizations, collectively represents millions of Americans since it was founded in 2000. OVAC represents researchers, physicians, patients and families and many others – people working together to make funding for cancer research and prevention programs a national priority. For more information visit: www.ovaconline.org.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Alissa Havens or Steven Weiss
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
Phone: 202-661-5772 or 202-661-5711
E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]
