PREVENT HPV Cancers Act Letter of Support
July 18th, 2023
The Honorable Kathy Castor
U.S. House of Representatives
2052 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable Julia Letlow
U.S. House of Representatives
142 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable Kim Schrier
U.S. House of Representatives
1110 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Representative Castor, Representative Letlow, and Representative Schrier:
The undersigned childhood cancer organizations are members of the Alliance for Childhood Cancer, consisting of patient advocacy groups, healthcare professionals and scientific organizations, representing Americans who care deeply about childhood cancer. We are writing to offer our endorsement of H.R. 3633, the PREVENT HPV Cancers Act, which would raise awareness about the human papillomavirus (HPV) and HPV-related cancers.
Each year in the U.S. an estimated 16,000 children are diagnosed with cancer. Approximately 1 in 263 children in the U.S. are diagnosed with cancer before their 20th birthday. Overall, incidence rates from 2010 through 2019 have stabilized in children after increasing since 1975 but continued to rise in adolescents by 1% per year, although trends vary by cancer type.
Unfortunately, cancer remains the most common cause of death by disease for children in America.
Together, we have made significant advances to develop better treatments for many forms of childhood cancer. However, for too many children, progress is limited and there is no available cure.
Unfortunately, 1 in 5 children diagnosed with cancer in the U.S. will not survive, and for the ones who do, the battle is never over. By the age of 50, more than 99% of survivors have had a chronic health problem, and 96% have experienced a severe or life-threatening condition caused by the toxicity of the treatment that initially saved their life, including brain damage, loss of hearing and sight, heart disease, secondary cancers, learning disabilities, infertility and more.
Childhood cancer survivors are at risk for developing secondary cancers, making efforts in cancer prevention and awareness especially important for their long-term health. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HPV causes approximately 36,000 cases of cancer in the United States each year, accounting for 3% of all cancers in women and 2% of all cancers in men. The PREVENT HPV Cancers Act would create a national HPV awareness campaign to educate providers, parents, and the public about HPV and the HPV vaccine. The legislation also reauthorizes the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection program to ensure timely access to cervical cancer screenings and diagnostic services. Cancer prevention and awareness programs are important for childhood cancer survivors after treatment.
Thank you for your work on behalf of children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer. The Alliance for Childhood Cancer looks forward to working together on this innovative endeavor.
Please contact Sarah Milberg, Co-Chair of the Alliance for Childhood Cancer, at smilberg@allianceforchildhoodcancer.org or Dr. Michael Link, Co-Chair of the Alliance for Childhood Cancer, at mlink@stanford.edu for any additional information.
Sincerely,
The Alliance for Childhood Cancer
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Association for Cancer Research
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology
The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation
Association for Clinical Oncology
Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurses
Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Workers
Children’s Brain Tumor Foundation
Children’s Cancer Cause
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation
Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research
St. Baldrick’s Foundation
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
2318 Mill Road Alexandria, VA 22314 | alliance@asco.org | www.allianceforchildhoodcancer.org