Here’s some good news for the millions of people nationwide whose lives have been touched by cancer: We now know how to win the war on this feared disease.
Scientific advances over the past 30 years have resulted in enormous progress against cancer. The American Cancer Society recently reported that the number of cancer deaths dropped by 3,014 in 2004, despite an older and larger population. This followed a drop of 369 deaths from cancer in 2003, the first decline since nationwide data was first compiled 70 years ago. Age-adjusted cancer death rates, measured as a proportion of the population, have been declining for years.
There are many hopeful trends like these but, as all too many of us know, cancer continues to be one of our biggest health problems. An estimated 1.4 million Americans will be told they have cancer this year, including 19,200 in Colorado. Cancer will kill an estimated 560,000 Americans this year (nearly 6,700 in this state), which makes it the second-leading cause of death in this country.
We can conquer cancer once and for all, but doing so will require an immediate and unfailing commitment to medical research and established methods of prevention, early detection and treatment. It is up to our elected leaders to embrace that commitment by investing the necessary funds for cancer research and vital cancer-fighting programs.
Unfortunately, federal cancer funding has been inadequate in recent years. The last Congress voted to cut the budget of the National Institutes of Health for the first time in 35 years, and funding for cancer research and cancer control programs was reduced for the first time in more than a decade.
Worse still, the president’s proposed budget for the current fiscal year included an additional $40 million cut for the National Cancer Institute, when the NCI estimated that it would take a $296 million increase to maintain current services and provide for minimal growth.
The Bush administration and the new congressional leadership have an opportunity to recommit the country to defeating cancer. In the spirit of bipartisanship, they should ensure that the federal government continues to lead the way in funding the fight. Future gains, measured in lives saved and a higher quality of life for cancer survivors, are theirs to accomplish.
Consider the progress we’ve already made. In the 1950s, only a third of those diagnosed with cancer survived for at least five years. Today, two-thirds of cancer patients reach that milestone. America’s investment in research reduced cancer mortality rates by nearly 14 percent between 1991 and 2004, saving 544,500 lives.
Death rates for colorectal cancer have dropped by 25 percent nationally since the 1970s. The development of colon cancer screening tests and treatments has led to a 90 percent five-year survival rate for early-stage diagnoses. The same is true for breast cancer. In the 1950s, the survival rate for localized breast cancer was 80 percent. Today it is nearly 100 percent, in large part because of mammography and drugs developed and tested by NIH-supported scientists.
We have an impressive record to build upon in the fight against cancer. But further progress depends on whether elected officials will commit to defeating the disease. We cannot afford to cut or freeze federal research funding. Rather, lawmakers should support research at levels that at least keep pace with rising costs.
We must also boost our efforts at preventing cancer and detecting it early, and expand access to care for all when they need it. The American Cancer Society estimates that cancer will cost the country $206 billion this year alone, but for a fraction of that we could fund programs that help prevent cancer and detect it at its most treatable stages.
At the same time, we need to make health care reform a national priority. If we are to win the war on cancer, we must re-evaluate the structure of our nation’s health care system to address disparities in quality care.
These principles are part of the Congressional Cancer Promise, a short-term legislative road map that identifies specific and achievable steps that Congress must take if we are to accelerate our progress against this disease. More than 300 lawmakers have signed the Promise, signaling their support for making cancer a national priority.
Let’s not jeopardize the gains we’ve made against cancer. The costs of such a mistake would be felt for generations to come.
John R. Seffrin, Ph.D., is the national chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society and its sister advocacy organization, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.
