Senator Kennedy's Legacy
By: Lucy Spears

It's been 35 years since our nation declared war on cancer. Since this time, researchers have learned a great deal about the nature of cancer and its many causes. Yet, the sad fact is that we're still facing an enormous cancer crisis-cancer will kill more than a half million people this year.

Despite the many investments and advancements, one out of every two men and one out of every three women will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. Approximately 1.4 million new cases will be diagnosed this year alone. And, even worse news, is that uninsured Americans are 60 percent more likely to die from this disease.

Senator Ted Kennedy's recent diagnosis of brain cancer is a stunning reminder that no one is immune to cancer's grasp. I know this from personal experience. I lost my best friend to a brain tumor last year. She was only 40 years old. Another close friend passed away from ovarian cancer last week. She, too, was in her early 40s. And closest to home, is my own diagnosis of breast cancer when I was in my 30s. As a member of Dragon Boat Charleston, I know men and women of all ages and backgrounds with all types of cancers. Cancer knows no race, age or gender.

Ironically, before his diagnosis, Senator Kennedy (D-MA) was spearheading a bi-partisan movement with Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), to evaluate our nation's progress on cancer research and treatment, address our shortcomings, and renew our commitment to discovering and delivering the cures. I recently returned from Washington, DC, where I joined more than 300 other survivors and advocates from Susan G. Komen for the Cure in speaking with members of Congress and their staff about this important legislation. Other groups from the cancer community are joining us on this mission and will be meeting in Washington, DC in the months to come. This legislation may well be Senator Kennedy's legacy.

Early detection in many cases is the closest thing we have to the cures. Susan G. Komen for the Cure has shown the effectiveness of this for breast cancer, and the same is true for other cancers such as colon and cervical. Unfortunately, most cancers do not have any effective early detection methods. The five-year survival rate for lung cancer is a dismal 15 percent-this for a cancer that kills more men and women a year than prostate, breast, colon, kidney and melanoma cancers combined. That has to change.

It is time to unleash the amazing power of science, technology and medicine to discover new ways to detect cancer of any type as early as possible - earlier than we can currently imagine. However, we have to remind ourselves as we push for science to dream up the early detection methods that will save lives tomorrow, millions of our friends and loved ones do not have sufficient access to detection and treatment methods available today.

Forty-seven million Americans are uninsured, and that number continues to rise. Access to detection and treatment is why the uninsured have a 60 percent higher mortality rate than the insured. What is often forgotten is that most uninsured are hard-working people. Many of them once had insurance but lost it due to their jobs or health. One person's insurance alone can be as much as $4400 per month, if they have pre-existing conditions. But lack of health insurance is not the only barrier. Education, transportation, and cultural issues play a role as well.

While the statistics are staggering, the stories behind these numbers are tragic, and should compel us to action. We owe it to our children to put forth the financial and political commitment needed to energize science to discover and deliver the cures. We owe it to our neighbors to show a similar commitment to close the gaps in access that exist today. If we don't talk about the science and access to care together, as the science surges, the gaps will only widen.

Lucy Spears
5 Year Survivor
Vice President
Lowcountry Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Board of Directors