Rep. Payne, Jr. Pushes for March to be National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month
Media Contact: Patrick Wright -- Patrick.Wright@mail.house.gov
Washington, D.C. — Congressman Donald M. Payne, Jr. wrote a letter to President Joe Biden today to issue a presidential proclamation and declare March as National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. The move comes in the same week that Rep. Payne, Jr. wrote a separate letter to the president to increase funding for colorectal cancer research.
"When detected early, colorectal cancer has one of the highest recovery rates of any cancer," said Congressman Donald M. Payne, Jr. "But there is still too much that we do not know about this deadly disease. We need to increase funding and awareness of colorectal cancer so people have more confidence about getting screened, which will lead to more people being treated and save thousands of American lives."
Colorectal cancer is the second deadliest form of cancer and it has been one of the Congressman's leading issues in Congress since his father, Congressman Donald Payne, Sr., died of the disease in 2012. Rep. Payne, Jr. asks for the presidential proclamation every year to bring more awareness to colorectal cancer. He has been a staunch advocate for bills and other actions that aim to defeat the disease. Last year, Rep. Payne, Jr.'s bill to improve colorectal cancer screenings, the Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act, was signed into law. Now, Medicare recipients can get their colorectal cancer screenings and treatments during the screenings covered under the Medicare program. Before the bill, Medicare would cover screenings, but not treatments for the disease. The letter was co-signed by 41 members of Congress. The full letter is below:
January 29, 2021
The Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
President of the United States of America
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear President Biden:
Every March, the colorectal cancer community honors those who are fighting or have lost their battle with colorectal cancer by holding special events to raise awareness about the disease, including symptoms, risk factors, and screening tests. We ask that you join us in spreading the message about colorectal cancer prevention and early detection by issuing a Presidential Proclamation designating March 2021 as National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.
Despite being one of the most preventable types of cancer, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death in men and women in the United States and the total cost of treating this disease is estimated to be $20 billion annually. This year, an estimated 150,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer and more than 52,000 will die from the disease.
Due to effective screening tools, colorectal cancer can be caught in its early stages or even before polyps develop into cancer, which saves lives. Patients with localized colorectal cancer have a five-year survival rate of 90 percent, but only 39 percent of all diagnoses occur at this stage due, in part, to the underuse of screenings. It is estimated that if every individual aged 50 or older had regular screening tests, approximately 60 percent of deaths from colorectal cancer could be prevented.
We applaud the recent enactment of the Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act as part of Public Law 116-260, which will allow Medicare beneficiaries to obtain a colonoscopy without the threat of a surprise bill, removing a barrier to getting screened. However, there is a great need to increase education and awareness about screenings.
Lack of education and awareness are the biggest barriers to reducing death and suffering from colorectal cancer. Incidence of the disease has been on the rise, especially in younger populations, and significantly in minority communities. Through education and awareness, we can erase the myths, stigma, and embarrassment that are sometimes associated with colorectal cancer screenings to encourage regular screenings among all affected and at-risk populations.
Thank you for considering our request and we look forward to working with you to improve detection and treatment of colorectal cancer.
Sincerely,
Donald M. Payne, Jr.
Member of Congress