Joe Lieberman: “I rise to introduce the ``Colon Cancer Screen for Life Act of 2002.'' I am pleased that my colleagues Senators Collins…”

“I rise to introduce the ``Colon Cancer Screen for Life Act of 2002.'' I am pleased that my colleagues Senators Collins, Torricelli, Snowe and Cochran have joined me in introducing this very important bill. As many of my colleagues know from personal experience, colon cancer is a devastating disease. Nearly 57,000 people die each year from colon cancer. It is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in both men and women and the second most common cause of cancer-related death in America. But colon cancer can be combated, controlled and potentially conquered if it's caught in the earliest stages. In fact, colon cancer is a rare form of cancer in that it can even be prevented through screening, if pre-cancerous polyps are quickly identified and removed. The survival rate when colon cancer is detected at an early, localized stage is 90 percent. But only 37 percent of such cancers are discovered at that stage. The later the disease is caught, the lower the survival rate.”