Triple Negative Breast Cancer Day

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, as a congresswoman and a champion of health care initiatives, and as an advocate for breast cancer survivors, I rise today to commemorate Triple Negative Breast Cancer Day.

Breast cancer is a devastating disease that affects far too many of us. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about one in eight women will get breast cancer in her life, impacting hundreds of thousands of Americans each year.

I am particularly concerned about the disparities in breast cancer that leave women of color even more vulnerable to this deadly disease. While the many reasons are complex, it is critical that we continue to support research to get answers and to break down barriers to help save lives. For example, I have long been concerned about the impact of breast density, which can make cancers more difficult to detect on a mammogram. Additionally, dense breasts have been identified as a risk factor for developing breast cancer, according to the FDA. I applaud the FDA for its recent efforts to help ensure that patients are provided with accurate and timely information about the impact that breast density and other factors can have on the risk for developing breast cancer as part of a comprehensive breast health strategy.

Yet, we have so much more to do to help save lives especially when it comes to aggressive and deadly forms of breast cancer, like triple negative breast cancer. Women with triple-negative breast cancer often face a worse prognosis and limited treatment options.

This is why we need to increase funding for research for breast cancer, including for those who are fighting the triple negative variety. We need to find better ways to detect it early and to develop new treatments that will give women with triple-negative breast cancer better options in their fight against cancer.

But funding for more research is not enough. We also need to ensure equity and access to high quality and affordable treatments for all those with breast cancer, regardless of their race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Women from marginalized communities often face barriers to accessing care such as high co-pays for additional testing beyond a basic mammogram, and we must work to break down those barriers.

No woman should have to fight breast cancer alone, and no woman should be denied the care she needs because of where she comes from or how much money she makes. We must come together as a community to ensure that all fighting breast cancer have access to the care and treatment they need.

I urge my colleagues to join me in the fight against breast cancer and to support increased investments in critical research for those battling triple-negative and other forms of breast cancer research and ensuring equity and access to care for all women with breast cancer.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source