SAVE THE CDC PROSTATE CANCER PROGRAM
President Obama’s fiscal year 2016 budget eliminates all funding for the CDC prostate cancer program. Congress has the power to protect the CDC Prostate Cancer program. We ask for your advocacy to protect this life saving program.
Below, you will find a sample letter, which you are welcome to copy. Representatives hear from very few prostate cancer survivors and family members so your letter will be surprisingly powerful.
Please send a paper letter or post an online comment or email to the Senate and House committee leaders listed in the column on the right. >>>>>>> COMMENTS ARE NOW CLOSED
Cutting and pasting the sample letter into all four of the Senate leaders online comment page, the House committee online comment box and sending regular (paper&stamp) mail to the House committee leaders will take you less than 20 minutes. We know that this can be tedious, but, patient advocacy takes a bit of work. If you have a few extra minutes, then please use the Contact Your Congress link to locate your local representatives and send them the letter as well. http://www.contactingthecongress.org/
Also, please take a moment to write a sentence stating your personal interest in prostate cancer. For example, start the letter by saying, I am a prostate cancer survivor, or My father has prostate cancer.
Please share the link to this page with your friends, family and medical caregivers. You are truly our hero. Please contact Darryl if you have any questions or comments: darryl@malecare.org
SAMPLE LETTER
Save the CDC Prostate Cancer Program
Please ensure funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) prostate cancer program.
Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers in America. Almost 30,000 American men die from prostate cancer every year. And, African American men die from prostate cancer at a rate that is more than twice the rate for white men. Incredibly, President Obama’s FY 2016 Budget request eliminates funding for prostate cancer activities at the CDC.
In each of the past two fiscal years, Congress approved approximately $13 million for the CDC to conduct prostate cancer research, public awareness and surveillance. With this modest amount, the CDC researched and developed materials to improve informed decision making about prostate cancer screening and treatment.
Critically, the CDC supports research on underserved communities and prostate cancer. For example, in FY 2014, the CDC funded research on prostate cancer screening practices for African American men and funded another study on patterns of clinical response to the prostate specific antigen in American Indian and Alaska Native men. The science gained from both of these studies will help save the lives of countless American men.
The CDC prostate cancer program improves the health of all Americans by leveraging strong partnerships with state and local agencies. The link between the CDC and local healthcare providers supports economically efficient federal, state and community partnerships. The cancelation of prostate cancer activities will lead to the termination of state and local prostate cancer control programs, harming men throughout the United States.
According to Malecare Cancer Support, the President’s FY 2016 budget request will particularly imperil the lives of African American men. Prostate cancer treatment is most effective when coupled with early diagnosis. Elimination of the CDC prostate cancer program funding will reduce early health care provider contact and consultations. Defunding the CDC program will cause increased African American deaths from prostate cancer due to late stage diagnosis.
I am also concerned that silence on the elimination of funding for the CDC prostate cancer program will lead to reduced funding for prostate cancer research in all federal departments and agencies.
Please restore the CDC’s prostate cancer program’s annual budget of $13 million. By doing so, you will help to save the lives of the 220,000 American men who are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year, and notably, those men who may be diagnosed too late for beneficial treatment.
signed,
Your name, address
Include your phone number and email for authenticity and possible reply from the Representative.