Pancreatic Cancer Research and Education Act (S. 3320) is Introduced

May 2010

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island) introduced legislation aimed at fighting pancreatic cancer by increasing funding for research. The Pancreatic Cancer Research and Education Act (S. 3320) would increase awareness of pancreatic cancer and authorize an NIH grant program to better fund research on prevention, early detection, and treatment.  This is the companion bill to H.R. 745, introduced in January 2009 by Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Ginny Brown-Waite (R-FL).

Pancreatic cancer research suffers from lack of funding and institutional focus, constituting less than 2% of the National Cancer Institute’s research funding. Out of the researchers who received NCI funding specifically for pancreatic cancer research in 2008, only 38 received funding at levels appropriate for senior scientists – grants of $500,000 or more. By comparison, this level of funding was awarded to 273 breast cancer researchers, 129 prostate cancer researchers, and 121 colorectal cancer researchers.

This bill would direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to design and implement an initiative to coordinate and promote pancreatic cancer research and increase physician and public awareness of the disease; create an interdisciplinary committee, appointed by the Secretary, to guide pancreatic research activities, develop an annual strategic plan, and make recommendations regarding the prioritization and award of NIH grants for pancreatic cancer research; authorize an NIH grant program for research institutions to develop innovative compounds or technologies for prevention, early detection, or treatment of cancers with 5 year survival rates of less than 50%; and authorize the Secretary to designate two centers of research excellence focusing on pancreatic cancer research.

More than 37,000 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year and 75% of them will die within a year of the diagnosis. Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most lethal and overlooked types of cancer. As the overall mortality rate for other types of cancer in America has declined, the number of Americans dying from pancreatic cancer has increased.

How Can you Help?

You can help by contacting your Representative and Senators and letting them know how important this legislation is. Please find more information on how to write to your legislator by clicking here.