Breast Cancer Awareness Month

BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, the American Cancer Society estimates that in 2003, there will be 2,600 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed among women in Oregon and that 500 women will die of breast cancer in Oregon. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so it is important that we take stock of where we are in preventing, detecting and treating this disease.

All women are at risk of breast cancer, but when this cancer is found in its early stages, the 5-year survival rate approaches 100 percent. Screening exams are especially important because through early detection, women, in partnership with their health care providers, can significantly reduce deaths due to breast cancer.

A recent study published in the Archives of Surgery found that more cases of breast cancer were detected in women taking part in an Oregon breast cancer screening program than in women who were not part of the program. The Oregon Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer Program began in 1996 and is a statewide screening program for low-income women with little access to medical services. In this study, Oregon Health Sciences University researchers evaluated 15,730 women who had a total of 23,149 mammograms and 20,396 breast exams between January 1, 1997 and December 31, 2001. The study found the screening program had a detection rate of 12.3 breast cancers per 1,000 women, which is greater than rates of other screening programs. The women in this study diagnosed with breast cancer also had a 97-percent rate of compliance with suggested therapies for their cancer.

Working together, many groups have found that they can maximize their resources and develop more effective partnerships to reach health care consumers and providers in Oregon. Despite the excellent job that is being done, we need to continue to foster this activism and continue to find new ways to fund innovations in detection and treatment and to make them accessible to all women.

In Oregon, the American Cancer Society, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, the Y.W.C.A, and the National Black Leadership Initiative on Cancer, are just a few of the leaders in the community who have worked together and with other organizations to reach out to women in Oregon and their families to improve the health status of women in my home State. I want to thank them for their efforts in helping Oregon families have better information and awareness about this disease as well as helping women as they go through treatment.

I have always been a staunch supporter of Federal funds for breast cancer research, and I will continue to do so. It is gratifying to know we have come so far and to see how we can make progress in fighting this form of cancer.