Education for Young Women re: Cancer Risks
- Amanda Bridges
- January 13, 2015
- News
Campaign to Educate Young Women About Breast Cancer Risks Reauthorized by House
WASHINGTON – The Breast Health Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act, or the EARLY Act, was reauthorized for five years today by the House of Representatives. H.R. 5185 was introduced by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Rep. Renee Ellmers (R-N.C.).
Authored by Rep. Wasserman Schultz and originally signed into law in 2010, the EARLY Act created an education and outreach campaign administered by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to highlight the breast cancer risks facing young women and women of higher-risk ethnic and racial backgrounds, while empowering them with the tools they need to fight the disease. The EARLY Act also targets health care providers with education and information to ensure they are better equipped to catch breast cancer in young women.
“The fact remains that too many young women are unaware of their breast cancer risks. I was once one of them,” said Rep. Wasserman Schultz, who was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 41 and after seven surgeries is now seven years cancer-free. “I thank Congresswoman Ellmers and my colleagues for their support today, which allows the EARLY Act to build on its successful track record of reaching and serving more women and health practitioners with the tools and information necessary to detect and fight the disease early.”
“I am proud to be an original co-sponsor of the bipartisan EARLY Act and thrilled to see this reauthorization pass in the House of Representatives. The EARLY Act has a proven record of success—saving countless lives through both preventive and early detection measures,” said Rep. Ellmers. “This legislation ensures that all women—young and old— have the information and resources necessary to protect themselves, both throughout the battle and into remission.”
Over the last four years the CDC has already accomplished a number of objectives through the EARLY Act: identifying where the gaps exist in education and awareness among young women and health care providers about breast health; supporting young survivors through grants to organizations focused on helping these survivors cope with the many unique challenges they face, including fertility preservation, and long-term survivorship challenges; and implementing a targeted media campaign, including through innovative social media efforts, to reach women at the highest risks, including those at risk for cancers caused by genetic mutations.
“I look forward to another five years of the EARLY Act helping women acquire the knowledge and resources they need to not just survive, but thrive,” added Rep. Wasserman Schultz. “I thank Senators Klobuchar and Vitter for their leadership on the companion bill, and I call on my Senate colleagues to take up and reauthorize the EARLY Act before the end of the 113th Congress.”
