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2001 SESSION


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 564
Designating the month of September 2001 and each succeeding year as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in Virginia.

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 16, 2001
Agreed to by the Senate, February 14, 2001

WHEREAS, in the year 2000, approximately 180,000 men in the United States will be diagnosed with prostate cancer; and

WHEREAS, prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed form of cancer, other than skin cancer, in the United States and is the second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths among American men; and

WHEREAS, in Virginia prostate cancer is the third most commonly reported cancer, the most commonly reported among men, and the second leading cause of cancer death among men; and

WHEREAS, in 1995-1996 prostate cancer was diagnosed in some 7,000 men in Virginia, and nearly 1,600 men died as a result of the cancer; and

WHEREAS, as many as 25 percent of prostate cancer cases occur in men under the age of 65, and prostate cancer can affect men as young as 40; and

WHEREAS, African-American men and Hispanic men have disproportionately high rates of prostate cancer; and

WHEREAS, recent research strongly suggests that men could reduce the risk of prostate cancer mortality by following recommended prostate cancer screening guidelines, including regular examination by a health care provider; and

WHEREAS, worthy organizations such as the American Cancer Society, the American Foundation for Urological Disease, and the National Prostate Cancer Coalition have taken the lead in increasing awareness of early-detection methods and their importance in treating prostate cancer in its earliest stages; and

WHEREAS, Virginia Governor James S. Gilmore, III, has proclaimed September 2000 as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in the Commonwealth of Virginia; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly designate the month of September 2001 and each succeeding year as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in Virginia; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the General Assembly urge Virginians to use this occasion to become aware of and take advantage of early-detection practices, cancer screening guidelines, new treatment protocols, and ongoing research in the battle against prostate cancer; and, be it

RESOLVED FINALLY, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates transmit a copy of this resolution to the Secretary of the Commonwealth in order that she may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly in this matter.