Dent Reintroduces Colorectal Cancer Research Act

In 2011, LV Congressman Charlie Dent first introduced his Fight Colorectal Cancer Stamp Act. It would allow the post office to sell a “semipostal” stamp that raises money for critical colorectal cancer research programs. Funding for proven federal research programs could thus increase, without increasing federal government spending. Dent re-introduced that bill yesterday.

In a statement announcing his re-introduction, Dent notes that over 140,000 Americans are diagnosed with colorectal cancer every year. fifty thousand of them die. Sixty per cent of these deaths could be avoided if people just undergo screenings. Identifying and removing precancerous polyps would reduce the number of new colorectal cancer cases by 76 to 90 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

"They say an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," says Dent. "Consider the relatively low cost of this preventative service versus the gigantic costs of extensive cancer treatments and hospital stays that those suffering from colorectal cancer must endure. It’s not just dollars and cents, it is life or death.”

March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.