CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20172018 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 163Introduced by Assembly Member FloraJanuary 25, 2018 Relative to Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTACR 163, as introduced, Flora. Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. This bill would designate March 2018 as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in California.Digest Key Fiscal Committee: NO Bill TextWHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in Californians, with 14,604 new cases and 5,195 deaths in 2014; and WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is treatable, curable, and in many cases, completely preventable; and WHEREAS, When colorectal cancers are detected at an early stage, the survival rate is 92 percent; and WHEREAS, There are now more than one million survivors of colorectal cancer in the United States; and WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is known as a silent killer because symptoms only show up in the later stages of the disease; and WHEREAS, With proper screening, colorectal cancer can be prevented or, if found early, treated and cured; and WHEREAS, In 2014, only 55 percent of California adults 50 years of age and older had received a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy, and 19 percent had received a fecal occult blood test (FOBT) to screen for colorectal cancer; and WHEREAS, According to the United States Preventive Services Task Force, access to appropriate use of colorectal cancer screening tests, such as colonoscopies, sigmoidoscopies, FOBTs and fecal immunochemical tests (FIT), could reduce death rates of colon cancer up to 66 percent; and WHEREAS, According to the American Cancer Society, in 2013, only about 42 percent of colorectal cancers were diagnosed at an early, more treatable and curable stage; and WHEREAS, The uninsured, underinsured, and underserved are least likely to get screening for colorectal cancer, which means they are more likely to be diagnosed at a late stage when chances of survival drop to 14 percent; and WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer screening is one of the most cost-effective prevention measures in health care, more cost effective than breast or prostate cancer screening; and WHEREAS, African Americans have the highest colorectal cancer incidence and mortality rates of all racial groups in this country; and WHEREAS, In California, colorectal cancer is the most common cancer among Korean men and Hmong women, the second most common cancer among Hispanic, Japanese, South Asian, Kampuchean, and Hawaiian men, and the second most common cancer among Chinese, Filipino, Hispanic, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Vietnamese, and Hawaiian women; and WHEREAS, The California Colorectal Cancer Coalition (C4) is a nonprofit organization established to increase colorectal cancer screening rates in an effort to decrease mortality associated with the disease, and to implement strategies to reduce disparities in colorectal cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment among underserved populations in California; and WHEREAS, C4 encourages Californians to discuss the colorectal cancer screening test that is best for them with their doctors and believes that the best test is the one you have done now; now, therefore, be itResolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature designates the month of March 2018 as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in California; and be it furtherResolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20172018 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 163Introduced by Assembly Member FloraJanuary 25, 2018 Relative to Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTACR 163, as introduced, Flora. Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. This bill would designate March 2018 as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in California.Digest Key Fiscal Committee: NO
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20172018 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 163
Introduced by Assembly Member FloraJanuary 25, 2018
Introduced by Assembly Member Flora
January 25, 2018
Relative to Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
## LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
ACR 163, as introduced, Flora. Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.
This bill would designate March 2018 as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in California.
This bill would designate March 2018 as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in California.
## Digest Key
## Bill Text
WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in Californians, with 14,604 new cases and 5,195 deaths in 2014; and
WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is treatable, curable, and in many cases, completely preventable; and
WHEREAS, When colorectal cancers are detected at an early stage, the survival rate is 92 percent; and
WHEREAS, There are now more than one million survivors of colorectal cancer in the United States; and
WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is known as a silent killer because symptoms only show up in the later stages of the disease; and
WHEREAS, With proper screening, colorectal cancer can be prevented or, if found early, treated and cured; and
WHEREAS, In 2014, only 55 percent of California adults 50 years of age and older had received a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy, and 19 percent had received a fecal occult blood test (FOBT) to screen for colorectal cancer; and
WHEREAS, According to the United States Preventive Services Task Force, access to appropriate use of colorectal cancer screening tests, such as colonoscopies, sigmoidoscopies, FOBTs and fecal immunochemical tests (FIT), could reduce death rates of colon cancer up to 66 percent; and
WHEREAS, According to the American Cancer Society, in 2013, only about 42 percent of colorectal cancers were diagnosed at an early, more treatable and curable stage; and
WHEREAS, The uninsured, underinsured, and underserved are least likely to get screening for colorectal cancer, which means they are more likely to be diagnosed at a late stage when chances of survival drop to 14 percent; and
WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer screening is one of the most cost-effective prevention measures in health care, more cost effective than breast or prostate cancer screening; and
WHEREAS, African Americans have the highest colorectal cancer incidence and mortality rates of all racial groups in this country; and
WHEREAS, In California, colorectal cancer is the most common cancer among Korean men and Hmong women, the second most common cancer among Hispanic, Japanese, South Asian, Kampuchean, and Hawaiian men, and the second most common cancer among Chinese, Filipino, Hispanic, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Vietnamese, and Hawaiian women; and
WHEREAS, The California Colorectal Cancer Coalition (C4) is a nonprofit organization established to increase colorectal cancer screening rates in an effort to decrease mortality associated with the disease, and to implement strategies to reduce disparities in colorectal cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment among underserved populations in California; and
WHEREAS, C4 encourages Californians to discuss the colorectal cancer screening test that is best for them with their doctors and believes that the best test is the one you have done now; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, the Senate thereof concurring, That the Legislature designates the month of March 2018 as Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in California; and be it further
Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.