Lesa Fontaine with Georgia Governor Nathan Deal

Since President Clinton issued the first Presidential Proclamation recognizing March as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month over a decade ago, each year in March advocates request that their state and city officials issue proclamations acknowledging March as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.

This year was no different – except for the fact that we had more states and cities than ever proclaim March Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and it was all thanks to Fight Colorectal Cancer advocates.

Seventeen states and four cities and counties issued proclamations – and each one was accomplished because at least one advocate stepped forward and took the lead.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank every person who pushed for a proclamation this year. They are:

2012 STATE PROCLAMATIONS 

• Alabama – Thanks to advocate Lisa Borden!
• Arizona – Thanks to advocates Liz Dennis!
• Georgia – Thanks to advocate Lesa Fontaine (pictured above)!
• Idaho – Thanks to advocate Frank Luzzo!
• Illinois - Thanks to advocate Jennifer Olson!
• Iowa – Thanks to advocate Jeanna Jones!
• Massachusetts - Thanks to advocates Amy Robert and Evelyn Reyes!
• Minnesota - Thanks to advocate Kathryn Finn-Blume!
• Missouri - Thanks to advocate Ginny Goddard!
• New Jersey - Thanks to advocate David Dubin!
• North Carolina – Thanks to advocate John Lloyd!
• Ohio – Thanks to advocate Rene Elefteriou! 
• Pennsylvania – Thanks to advocate Patti Hollenback!
• South Carolina - Thanks to advocate Jo-Ellen DeLuca!
• Texas - Thanks to advocate Brienne Fisher!
• Virginia - Thanks to advocate Cindy Robinson!
• West Virginia - Thanks to advocate Pam Seijo!

2012 CITY/COUNTY PROCLAMATIONS

• Cincinnati, Ohio – Thanks to advocate Ed Murphy!
• Davis, California – Thanks to advocates Barbara and Doug Wilson!
• DeKalb County, Georgia – Thanks to advocate Lesa Fontaine (seen here with the County Commissioners)
• Gadsden, Alabama – Thanks to advocate Lisa Borden!

If your state or city is not listed above, plan to make a request in mid-winter 2013!

It’s been two weeks since the launch of the Colorectal Cancer Awareness Twibbon and we’re delighted to report that we have surpassed the 250-Twibbon mark!

Add this "twibute" to your Twitter background!

We would love to continue spreading awareness, so for those of you interested in showing your virtual support, you can still add the Twibbon to your Twitter avatar and/or add the Twibbon to your Facebook profile picture.

You can even go a step beyond and change your background to the 250-Person Twibute during Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month – a collage of all of you who have joined in this important cause. This is a great, easy way to get your friends and followers talking more about colorectal cancer and why there is such a need for funding for prevention and treatment research.

A big thank you to all those who have added a Twibbon so far – we appreciate all of your support in getting the word out!

Add a Twibbon to your Facebook & Twitter pic!

As Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month kicks off, we’re launching a new Blue Star Twibbon in partnership with My Colon Cancer Coach, to unite survivors, loved ones and advocates under a common symbol of support. Many of you are already participating in Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, and we’re thrilled to have your support as we head to Capitol Hill for Call-on Congress this week.

If you’ve never heard of a Twibbon, it’s basically a small image that overlays the corner of your Twitter or Facebook profile image, calling attention to colorectal cancer awareness and signifying your support for this cause. By adding one, you will:

• Raise awareness about the second-leading cancer killer in the United States among your social circles online
• Encourage more dialogue about colorectal cancer, including  legislation to promote prevention, screening and treatment
• Be a part of the movement for change and find new like-minded supporters and advocates

Throughout March and beyond, we would love for you to join this online community by adding the Blue Star Twibbon. Just visit the Colorectal Cancer Awareness Twibbon page to add yours today – and spread the word to others!

Representative Charlie Dent

Legislation was introduced in Congress today that will correct an oversight to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires Medicare beneficiaries to pay coinsurance when their screening colonoscopy also involves the removal of a polyp or cancer. When a screening colonoscopy turns therapeutic, the cost to the Medicare patient is significant – $100 to $300 – and it could serve as a deterrent to screening.

The legislation, Removing Barriers to Colorectal Cancer Screening Act of 2012 (H.R. 4120), was introduced by Rep. Charlie Dent of Pennsylvania.

The ACA waived the coinsurance and deductible for covered preventive services that have an “A” or “B” rating from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), effective 2011. Colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, and fecal occult blood testing (FOBT) all have “A” ratings for adults aged 50 to 75. Unfortunately, the ACA did not waive Medicare beneficiary coinsurance when a colonoscopy turns therapeutic; an oversight that requires legislative correction.

“Fight Colorectal Cancer applauds Rep. Dent for introducing this legislation,” stated Carlea Bauman, Fight Colorectal Cancer’s President. “It is appropriate that this bill is introduced today, the first day of Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. It is our belief that closing this gap in Medicare benefits will help save lives by keeping colonoscopies affordable and accessible for seniors.”

The median age for diagnosis of colorectal cancer is 71, and the risk for getting the disease increases with age.

Time to splash Blue all over!

Today is the first day of March and the first day of Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.

March is full of Blue Awareness, nationally and locally. Spread the message that colorectal cancer is preventable, treatable, and beatable.

Don’t hide your story! Tell your family, tell your friends, tell your coworkers. Get them screened, teach them the symptoms. Get them involved.

To get you started:

• Wear Blue tomorrow, and tell people why. Dress in Blue Day is March 2.
• Learn the key messages advocates will be giving members of Congress on March 7 when they Call on Congress.
• If you are 50 or older and haven’t been screened make an appointment for your colorectal cancer screening right now! March 8 is National Colorectal Cancer Screening Day.

March is here:

• Know the symptoms.
• Know your risk.
• Take action.

Knowing what the signs of colorectal cancer are and talking to your doctor about them – no matter what your age – is one of the key messages that Fight Colorectal Cancer President Carlea Bauman conveyed in her recent interview with Comcast Newsmakers.

In the weeks leading up to March, Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, the Washington, DC, Comcast station is broadcasting this piece to make people aware of the disease, as well as the work that Fight Colorectal Cancer is doing locally and around the country.

Comcast Newsmakers is a unique news program that provides community leaders with a platform to discuss issues and ideas important to the communities they serve allowing them to better connect with their constituents and the community at large. Fight Colorectal Cancer thanks the station for airing this vital public service announcement.

What do they have in common? All are forms of creative expression that cancer patients have used to “add life to their days,” wrote oncologist Evan Lipson, MD, of Johns Hopkins University in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (online edition Feb. 7, 2011).

One of his patients, Mike, was building a stone patio in his backyard because it was “therapeutic, physical, and something I could control and have a sense of accomplishment.”

Among the “unique and remarkable ways that people living with cancer make the most of their time,” Lipson has observed several themes: exercising, leaving a legacy, activism, building relationships, giving. And the most powerful, he thinks, is “creating something.”

It can be painting, pottery, gardening, writing—any outlet to express unspeakable feelings, to get a brief vacation from the roller-coaster of cancer, and/or to leave something behind.

Several studies have shown tangible physical results—improved lung function in patients having asthma; decreased pain in rheumatoid arthritis; and in a 2010 review of 12 studies in cancer patients, improved psychological states and perceived quality of life.

In his own patients, Lipson wrote, he has seen them find “relaxation, solace, calm, catharsis, and healing.” He added, “What you end up creating is not important. What matters is that the process feels good.” If it doesn’t feel good, it’s fine to move on to something else. Instead of judging the outcome according to some external standard, Lipson said, “A project is worthwhile because it comes from inside you.”

Source: Journal of Clinical Oncology (online edition Feb. 7, 2011)

Today we are pleased to announce that the Colorectal Cancer Coalition is now called Fight Colorectal Cancer.

Our updated mission statement is:
Fight Colorectal Cancer demands a cure for colon and rectal cancer. We educate and support patients and caregivers, push for changes in policy that will increase and improve research, and empower survivors to raise their voices against the status quo.

We’ve changed our name and our look because we have a mission to accomplish and it requires some tough talk. Because when we’re talking about a disease that kills someone every 9 minutes, we want to make sure the person listening to us knows that the status quo is not good enough. We want them to know that there are 50,000 people who will lose their lives in 2011 to colorectal cancer, and that is unacceptable.

We are tired of the incremental progress and the words without action. We’re building an army, we’re waging a war and we intend to win; so much so that we made it our new vision statement: We envision victory over colorectal cancer.

Beyond the new name and logo and rebranded new website, our long-time supporters will see that the core of our work has not changed.

• We support patients, family members and caregivers.
• We serve as a resource for colorectal cancer advocates, policymakers, medical professionals, researchers and health care providers.
• And we do everything we can to increase and improve research.

At the same time, we:

• Ask patients, caregivers and family members join the fight against colorectal cancer by learning more about the disease, talking to others about it and becoming advocates.
• Urge researchers to act boldly and take chances with cutting-edge research, and
• Push policymakers to introduce and support legislation that helps people with colorectal cancer.

We’d like to thank our friends at Big Duck for all their hard work in helping us launch this new brand. Please pardon our dust as we work to update our site and links over the next few weeks. If you have any questions or concerns, please let us know.

Fight Colorectal Cancer.

Get behind a cure.

This critical legislation will ensure that even in tight fiscal times, funding for life-saving federal colorectal cancer research programs can be sustained.

Since President Clinton issued the first Presidential Proclamation recognizing March as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month over a decade ago, much progress has been made in the fight against colorectal cancer. Thanks to federally funded research, treatment options for colorectal have expanded to seven drugs, and more precise surgery and radiation.

But despite the research advances we have seen, colorectal cancer still affects far too many American families. Every three and a half minutes, someone is diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Every nine minutes, someone dies from colorectal cancer.

The majority of all colorectal cancer research, including clinical trials, is conducted by the federal government. Federal funding also supports colorectal cancer symptom awareness and screening programs.

Funding from sales of the new colorectal cancer stamp would go to:
(A) 40 percent shall be transferred to the Department of Defense Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program for colorectal cancer research;
(B) 40 percent shall be transferred to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for colorectal cancer control programs; and
(C) the remainder shall be transferred to the National Institutes of Health for colorectal cancer research.

Many men and women who have been diagnosed with colorectal cancer attribute their survival to clinical trials and research funded by the government.

“As the friend of many patients and survivors, I am grateful to Representative Charlie Dent for his leadership on this critical legislation that will increase federal funding for colorectal cancer and bring much-need attention to the fight against this disease during Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. As the daughter of a letter carrier who collected stamps as a child, I am personally thrilled about the idea. This stamp will help us raise much needed funds for colorectal cancer and will allow patients, caregivers and advocates to show their determination to win the fight against colorectal cancer every time they use the postal service,” said Carlea Bauman, President of the Colorectal Cancer Coalition.

“We urge Congress to pass this life-saving legislation to help us continue to fund proven federal research programs without increasing federal spending. Ongoing cancer research is on the verge of making great progress in the prevention, detection, and treatment of cancer. If we are going to find a cure for colorectal cancer in our lifetimes, we need a sustained investment in research programs that encourage innovation and ensure discoveries make it from bench to bedside as quickly as possible.”

Join the Congressional Butt-in TODAY

Sponsored by the Colorectal Cancer Coalition and Prevention Cancer Foundation

• Call 1-866-615-3375 today or tomorrow to reach your Representative and Senators.
• Urge your legislators to co-sponsor the Colorectal Cancer Prevention, Early Detection, and Treatment Act.
• The bill will provide colorectal cancer screenings and treatment for low-income, uninsured and underinsured individuals who are not eligible for Medicare.
• Your three calls will take less than five minutes and could help save thousands of lives.

Don’t know what to say when you call?

Here are some potential talking points that you can use during your call. Remember, the key point is to ask your Representative and Senators to co-sponsor the Colorectal Cancer Prevention, Early Detection, and Treatment Act!

• I am calling today to bring a bill to your attention that was introduced by Representatives Kay Granger and Jim McGovern along with Senators Joseph Lieberman and Kay Bailey Hutchison.
• The Colorectal Cancer Prevention, Early Detection, and Treatment Act will create a national screening and treatment program modeled after the very successful breast and cervical cancer screening program.
• While the recently enacted health care reform legislation will lower the cost of preventive services like colonoscopies for many Americans, the health care reform legislation will not do anything to increase awareness about the importance of early detection and screening. Today, even among those with health insurance, screening rates for colorectal cancer are much too low – less than half of those who should be screened get screened!
• When the national breast and cervical cancer screening program was enacted in the mid-80s, the screening rate for breast cancer was around 29%. Today, that rate is close to 80%. It is time we made the same headway in the fight against colorectal cancer and enacted a national screening and treatment program for colorectal cancer.
• Please support the Colorectal Cancer Prevention, Early Detection, and Treatment Act. Colorectal cancer is a cancer that can often be prevented through regular screening beginning at age 50 or at a younger age if there is an increased risk. This bill will help educate the public and improve access to screening for those that might not otherwise be able to afford it.

Help spread the word! The more calls we make, the greater the impact.

Made possible thanks to charitable grants from Genentech and Epigenomics