Winter Garden Magazine November 2018 | Page 26

HALTING PANCREATIC CANCER IS URGENT:
INCREASE FEDERAL FUNDING FOR LIFESAVING RESEARCH
PANCREATIC CANCER NUMBERS DON’T LIE
1
2
3
It is one of the deadliest major cancers with the
lowest survival rate at just 9 percent.
It is expected to rise to the 2 nd leading
cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S.
around 2020.
It is currently the 3 rd leading cause of
cancer-related deaths in the U.S.
No early detection tests for pancreatic cancer exist and
few effective treatment options are available.
CONGRESSIONAL ACTION IS NEEDED
TO IMPROVE OUTCOMES
The pancreatic cancer community is grateful for
congressional support that has increased research
funding through the National Institutes of Health
(NIH) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI). However
pancreatic cancer’s statistics tell us it’s not enough.
(See chart.)
Innovative discoveries are being made in the lab due to
the increases in research funding, but with extremely
limited treatment options and no early detection
method, additional funding and focused efforts are
urgently needed to quickly advance these discoveries
into meaningful solutions for patients and their families.
“When we all focus our resources, talents
and time on a common issue, even a
problem as devastating as this insidious
disease can be overcome.”
—Eight-Year Pancreatic Cancer Survivor
IMPACT of NIH FUNDING
Eighty percent of all pancreatic cancer research
funding is provided via federal sources, most of it
through the the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
This funding has resulted in basic understanding
about differences between pancreatic cancer and
healthy cells, which is paving the way toward early
detection and treatments.
2016 NCI Annual Funding - Top Four Cancer Killers 1
$600 MIL
$500 MIL
$516.2M
$400 MIL
$300 MIL
$282.2M
$200 MIL
$208.9M
$152.1M
$100 MIL
$0 MIL
Lung
1
Colon & Rectum Pancreas
2
Breast
3
4
1. NCI Funded Research Portfolio [http://fundedresearch.cancer.gov/nciportfolio/].
Accessed April 2018.
THE PANCREATIC CANCER ACTION NETWORK CALLS ON THE 115TH CONGRESS TO DEMAND BETTER BY:
• Supporting $39.3 billion for the NIH in FY 2019, including $6.375 billion for the NCI and full funding provided
from the 21st Century Cures Act.
• Supporting pancreatic cancer research in the Department of Defense’s Congressionally Directed Medical
Research Program and provide a funding increase for the program.
• Supporting the implementation of the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act — legislation that created a scientific
framework for pancreatic cancer and outlined priorities for making progress in the disease.
• Joining the Congressional Caucus on the Deadliest Cancers to support and raise awareness about the nation’s
deadliest cancers, defined by the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act as those with a five-year survival rate below
50 percent.
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WINTER GARDEN MAGAZINE
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NOVEMBER 2018
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©2018 Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. All rights reserved. REV-6/18