Title
Resolve: That the month of November be declared "Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month" in the City of Malden, Massachusetts.
Body
WHEREAS in 2014, an estimated 46,420 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the United States and 39,590 will die from the disease;
WHEREAS pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers, is currently the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the United States and is projected to become the second by 2020;
WHEREAS pancreatic cancer is the only major cancer with a five-year relative survival rate in the single digits at just six percent;
WHEREAS when symptoms of pancreatic cancer present themselves, it is generally late stage, and 73 percent of pancreatic cancer patients die within the first year of their diagnosis while 94 percent of pancreatic cancer patients die within the first five years;
WHEREAS approximately 920 deaths will occur in Massachusetts in 2014;
WHEREAS the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act was signed into law in 2013, which calls on the National Cancer Institute to develop a scientific framework, or strategic plans, for pancreatic cancer and other deadly cancers, which will help provide the strategic direction and guidance needed to make true progress against these diseases; and
WHEREAS, it will be very difficult to leverage the opportunities that come out of the scientific framework developed as a result of the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act unless sustained and adequate funding is provided to the National Institutes of Health and National Cancer Institute; and
WHEREAS federal funding for medical research is critical to job protection and creation in Massachusetts; and
WHEREAS the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network is the national organization serving the pancreatic cancer community in Malden and nationwide through a comprehensive approach that includes public policy, research funding, patient services, and public awareness and education related to developing ...
Click here for full text