BILL NUMBER: SCR 145CHAPTERED BILL TEXT RESOLUTION CHAPTER 139 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE AUGUST 24, 2016 ADOPTED IN SENATE MAY 31, 2016 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 18, 2016 INTRODUCED BY Senator Gaines MAY 17, 2016 Relative to Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SCR 145, Gaines. Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. This measure would proclaim the month of September 2016 as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in California. WHEREAS, Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in men aside from skin cancer. An estimated one in seven men will develop this disease in his lifetime; and WHEREAS, The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be 180,890 new cases of prostate cancer in the United States in 2016, resulting in an estimated 26,120 deaths; and WHEREAS, An estimated 17,240 men in California will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year, and an estimated 3,050 men in California will die from this disease; and WHEREAS, African American men have the highest prostate cancer incidence rates in the world, and their prostate cancer mortality rate in the United States is more than twice that of any other ethnic group of men; and WHEREAS, Early prostate cancer usually has no symptoms, and studies suggest strong familial predisposition may be responsible for 5 percent to 10 percent of the disease cases; and WHEREAS, Advanced prostate cancer commonly spreads to the bones, which can cause pain in the hips, spine, ribs, or other areas in the body; and WHEREAS, The survival rate approaches 100 percent when prostate cancer is diagnosed and treated early, but it drops to 28 percent when it spreads to other parts of the body; and WHEREAS, Treatment options for prostate cancer vary depending on a man's age, the state and grade of his cancer, and his other existing medical conditions; and WHEREAS, The American Cancer Society recommends that a man should have an opportunity to make an informed decision about whether to be tested for prostate cancer based on his personal values and preferences; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby proclaims the month of September 2016 as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in California; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature joins communities across our nation to increase awareness about the importance for men to make informed decisions with their health care providers about early detection and testing for prostate cancer; and be it further Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.