While the FDA’s proposed changes to regulation of tanning devices are a welcome step, skin cancer incidence in the U.S. continues to rise. Melanoma, the most lethal form of skin cancer, is the fastest-growing cancer and is being diagnosed in more and more young people, largely attributable to the use of tanning beds. There is more work to be done on the regulatory, legislative and education fronts to save lives through prevention and early detection of the disease.

Recognizing this unexpected “Catch – 22” situation, U.S. Representative Charlie Dent (R-PA) has introduced the Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act of 2013 (HR 1070) as a resolution to this problem.  This legislation would ensure that 100 percent of the costs of cancer screening are covered under Medicare Part B, and that older Americans are not subject to unexpected cost sharing provisions if polyps are removed during a colonoscopy.

The Prevent Cancer Foundation supports this legislation and applauds Rep. Dent and the original co-sponsors of the bill: Reps. Joe Courtney (D-CT), Michael Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ).

Colorectal cancer is highly preventable, yet this year, 142,820 Americans will be diagnosed and more than 50,000 will die from the disease. Beginning at age 50, men and women should be screened regularly as the risk of colorectal cancer can increase with age. We must encourage and enable people to follow colorectal screening guidelines. For older Americans, many of whom are on fixed incomes, HR 1070 would remove a tremendous barrier for screening in a population that is most vulnerable to colorectal cancer.

For more information on our legislative activities and how to be an advocate for preventable cancers, please visit our Advocacy Action Center.

Read the full NBC News article

Join members of the Prevent Cancer community by calling 1-866-615-3375 and asking your Member of Congress to support legislation that will eliminate co-payments for screening colonoscopies when polyps are found. This legislation, HR 1070, was introduced last week by Rep. Charlie Dent (R-PA), along with Reps. Michael Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Joe Courtney (D-CT) and Donald Payne Jr. (D-NJ), and is called the “Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act.” Passage of this legislation is essential, to ensure that Medicare beneficiaries who have screening colonoscopies, which are fully covered by Medicare, are not subject to unexpected costs. Members of Congress want to hear from you, to let them know that this bill is important to you and your loved ones.

When you call 1-866-615-3375 you will be given very specific instructions on the phone about what to do. Help us build support for this legislation, and other important bills, by participating in this event and by joining our Advocacy Action Center.

We hope that you will be part of this effort and make your voices heard.

Another “champion” title appropriate for Senator Harkin is for his leadership efforts to fight childhood obesity and promote healthy living. In late January, at the beginning of the 113th Congress, he introduced the Healthy Lifestyles and Prevention America Act (HeLP America Act). The HeLP America Act is a comprehensive bill that would expand childhood obesity prevention efforts in schools, communities and workplaces and discourage companies from marketing unhealthy food to children. The bill would create pathways to increase access to nutrition information, promote physical activity and discourage tobacco use among children.

Some key nutrition provisions in the bill include:

• Expanding the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program that provides healthy fruit and vegetable snacks to children to all low-income elementary schools.
• Calling on the Interagency Working Group on Food Marketed to Children to finalize and release model guidelines for food marketing to children.
• Working toward a single front-of-pack labeling system for packaged foods.
• Implementing guidelines for reducing the sodium content of processed foods and restaurant meals.
• Providing healthier food options and calorie labeling for concessions and vending on federal property.
• Improving access to healthy foods, including children’s meals, in national parks.

The Prevent Cancer Foundation looks forward to working with the Senator and partners in the health advocacy community to advance this legislation in Congress. You can show your support by contacting your Member of Congress and requesting that they cosponsor this bill. You can find information on how to contact your Federal elected officials by signing up for our Advocacy Action Center at www.preventcancer.org.

Read the Full Fox News Health Article

The decision ends the suit of Sherley v. Sebelius, filed in August of 2009 by two researchers who study adult stem cells who challenged an Executive Order signed by President Barack Obama in the first months of his Presidency. The presidential action created guidelines for the funding of hESC research by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The researchers argued that hESC research violates a law that bans federal funds for research that destroys embryos.

As a longtime member of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research (CAMR) Board of Directors and leadership, the Prevent Cancer Foundation has supported efforts to create strict ethical guidelines governing the funding of embryonic stem cell research for more than a decade. We concur with Nobel Laureates and leaders in medical research that regenerative medicine research is central to lifesaving treatment and cures for a multitude of diseases such as cancer, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes and spinal cord injuries. We applauded President Obama, when he issued his guidelines in 2009 expanding the policy regarding embryonic stem cell research and allowed the NIH to use Federal dollars to fund grants under strict ethical guidelines and oversight.

Now that this legal challenge has been dismissed by the high court, we are hopeful that the field will begin to progress further. While there will likely be other challenges in the future, this first court win is a landmark one. Regenerative medicine is moving forward, with the first early stage clinical trials having opened in research on blindness and paralysis. Other trials are on the horizonin both the hESC fields and soon with progress in Induced Pluripotent Stem (ips) cell research.

While the court challenge has been long, the Prevent Cancer Foundation and our advocates have worked tirelessly to ensure that our lawmakers understand the value in medical research and disease prevention. We applaud the ruling and hope that this critical work accelerates medical research for millions of patients.

For more information on this and other issues impacting cancer prevention, please join us by signing up for our Advocacy Action Center at www.preventcancer.org.

Making Sense of the Fiscal Cliff

Last month Lisa Hughes defined the fiscal cliff in a Prevent Cancer Foundation blog post, describing the economic effects that could “result in tax increases, spending cuts and a corresponding reduction in the budget deficit at the end of 2012.” In order to achieve their goal of decreasing the deficit by almost 50%, Congress has to dramatically reduce its spending, an act easier said than done. Last year Congress passed a Budget Control Act which saved the government from defaulting by putting in place a series of laws which would guarantee a reduction in the deficit through sequestration by the end of 2012. In 2011, almost 80% of the spending budget could be classified as one of four types of spending: discretionary, Defense Department, Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid. Of these categories, only discretionary (18%) and Defense Department (19%) spending could legally be subjected to cuts.

When presented with these options, it might seem that slashing the discretionary budget is a suitable option, given that it is not defined by existing legislation and must be set annually by Congress. What you may not realize, however, is that discretionary spending encompasses all the government departments, agencies and programs that affect our daily lives. Over the next 10 years, Congress plans on cutting $110 billion from discretionary spending; this amount will be evenly split between non-defense and defense discretionary spending, despite defense spending’s budget being much larger.

How will the Fiscal Cliff Affect Healthcare?

Allow me to explain exactly why you should care that by 2022, non-defense discretionary spending will have shrunk to its lowest amount since 1962. The agencies that derive funding solely from non-defense discretionary spending also happen to be the agencies that are almost entirely responsible for the longer, healthier lifespans that we as Americans enjoy today. The National Institutes of Health, the National Cancer Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention all rely on funding from the non-defense discretionary budget. If Congress follows through with its planned cuts, Americans will lose out on $55 billion worth of research, educational programs and direct health services over the next decade. Researchers will not receive grants and future medical breakthroughs responsible for drastically reducing mortality from diseases like cancer will be in jeopardy. In the past decade alone, we have seen the introduction of therapies and vaccines which reduced incidence and mortality rates for countless diseases like breast, cervical and colorectal cancers. Without funding, we cannot hope to see the same kind of success in diseases like pancreatic cancer that has a steadily rising mortality rate.

Don’t Let Congress Compromise Your Health!

Additionally, if medical research is allowed to stagnate, our nation’s economic health may decline. More Americans than ever will be missing work to spend time in doctor’s offices and hospitals, and those who will be diagnosed with chronic diseases might even lose their jobs, along with any possibility of covering their health expenses themselves. The negative impact these cuts will have on the economy could be tremendous. The grants provided through this funding go far in spurring economic activity, beginning with the salaries of medical researchers who could go on to create pharmaceuticals which could generate millions in revenue.

By allowing our leading medical research organizations to be under-funded, we are putting the health of ourselves and our loved ones at risk. It is not too late to keep this from happening. We are asking you to get involved in the fight for your health. Reach out to your Senator and member of Congress and tell them that you do not support cuts to non-discretionary defense spending and ask your friends and family to do the same.

Read the Full Philadelphia Inquirer Article

The balance of power will remain almost exactly the same. This likely means that the President’s Affordable Care Act will continue to be enacted and in full effect in 2014, with states, insurers, providers and individuals moving forward in this process with certainty that the law will stand. States will play a major role in creating their insurance plans, determining minimum benefits coverage and setting up insurance exchanges; as a result, the many gubernatorial and state legislative elections will have an impact on new health care laws as well.

Federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research will continue to go forward under a rigorous policy of review and oversight put in place by the National Institutes of Health. The Supreme Court is currently deciding if it will hear a challenge to the funding guidelines, but pending a decision by the high court, it too will continue forward.

Perhaps the most urgent issue that Congress will need to address will be the fiscal cliff. These debates are already underway. The fiscal cliff refers to the effect of a series of enacted bills at the Federal level which, if unchanged, will result in tax increases, spending cuts, and a corresponding reduction in the budget deficit at the end of 2012. And while deficit reduction is a necessity, there is widespread concern about the major impact that this situation could have on the economy and on individuals. Congress and the President have largely postponed acting to address this issue until after the outcome of the election, and there is division among political pundits about how and if our lawmakers will deal with this looming crisis. This fiscal cliff and Congressional activity related to sequestration will have a major impact on medical research funding in this country – an impact that may have a very significant negative impact on cancer research and prevention.

Congress has returned to a lame duck session this week to address many undecided funding and budgetary issues. Newly elected Members of Congress have also come to Washington, DC this week for orientation to their new roles. Whether you are represented in the House and Senate by new or old Members, it is essential that you make your voices heard on these and other policy issues.

For more information, visit Prevent Cancer Foundation’s Advocacy Action Center.