Congressional Update

The November elections are only days away, and the House recessed after passing a Continuing Resolution that will keep the government in operation until November 22^nd. The Senate also approved the Continuing Resolution, but may remain in session for a few more days to try to wrap up several outstanding issues. While no major action is anticipated, House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Il) remains open to calling House members back to session, if absolutely Necessary. Of the 13 annual appropriations measures, only a 355.4 billion spending bill for the Department of Defense (DOD) and a bill providing $10.5 billion for military construction projects have received final approval in both chambers. Despite several attempts to bring the Labor/HHS/Education bill before the full Senate, objections were raised by lawmakers who insisted the Senate complete action on a Resolution authorizing military action against Iraq and legislation to create a Department of Homeland Security. The House Committee on Appropriations has not taken action on the Labor/HHS/Education appropriations bill due, in large part, to disagreements over the level of funding that should be approved.

New Board Members

Friends of Cancer Research welcomes to our board, new members Mark McKinnon, Paula Kim, and Jean Prewitt. Together they bring a wealth of energy and enthusiasm to our organization.

Paula Kim is the founding CEO and Chairman of the Board for Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN), the first national advocacy organization for pancreas cancer. Kim currently serves as a Collaborating Partner in the National Dialogue on Cancer and PanCAN representative to the Cancer Leadership Council, as well as several other boards.

Mark McKinnon is a managing partner of Public Strategies, Inc. and President of Maverick Media. An advisor to President George W. Bush, he served as media director during the presidential campaign, where he oversaw a $150-million advertising effort. McKinnon is an award- winning media producer and communications strategist who has served as a principal advisor to more than 100 corporate and political campaigns.

Jean Prewitt is President of AFMA, the leading trade association representing the interests of independent producers and distributors of English- language films and television programs. Jean previously served as an official with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration and was a principal at Podesta.com representing entertainment and high-tech companies.

Response to The Wall Street Journal

 Recently, an article ran in The Wall Street Journal on October 16^th, 2002 (New Statistics Show Increase in Cancer Rates) talking about how America isn’t winning the war on cancer. It went on to say that contrary to optimistic reports from the National Cancer Institute showing the incidence of several devastating cancers has leveled off or even declined in recent years, rates for at least some of those cancers has been rising, according to a new analysis by NCI scientists. The article prompted a swift response by FOCR, and below is the letter to the editor printed by Wall Street Journal on October 29, 2002:

Letters to the Editor:

Take Heart in Advances

In the War on Cancer

 10/29/2002

 The Wall Street Journal

 A23

(Copyright (c) 2002, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)

                Yes, the most recent cancer statistics are somber ("New Statistics Show Increase in Cancer Rates," Oct. 16). But it is important to point out that despite the enormousness of the challenge, the National Cancer Institute -- in coordination with America's scientific, research, physician, pharmaceutical and biotechnology communities -- is also marking real achievements in the fight for a cure.

                 Researchers have learned, for instance, that cancer is a disease resulting from multiple genetic changes initiated by a variety of hereditary, environmental, lifestyle and infectious agents. Research advances based on this understanding are giving physicians better diagnostic tools and therapies. Early clinical trials -- our best hope to expedite drugs from the laboratory to the bedside -- are also providing hope to newly diagnosed cancer patients.

                Rather than allowing ourselves to be discouraged by the incidence of treatment and prevention therapies in development through the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute. Partnerships with industry leaders, the FDA and other government agencies (including a groundbreaking public-private partnership this summer between the National Cancer Institute and five leading pharmaceutical companies that my organization helped to realize) are facilitating research collaborations that may prove truly lifesaving. We are poised to win this war on cancer, and we must not be deterred by deficits along the way.