Prostate Cancer Symptoms and Treatment

Meeting Planned to Examine Bureaucratic Obstacles

Release: November 20, 2009
Contact: Linwood Norman, 202-303-3125

ZERO – The Project to End Prostate Cancer is seeking to meet with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to discuss federal bureaucratic obstacles that stand in the way of providing prostate cancer testing and treatment for uninsured men at high risk for the disease.

“For several years now, we have worked with members of Congress and have spoken with the Centers for Disease Control about creating a program so that uninsured men at highest risk could receive prostate cancer testing and treatment,” said ZERO’s CEO Quentin “Skip” Lockwood. 

“The major obstacle is that CDC says this program cannot be developed because of the guidelines by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) which opposes prostate cancer services.

“As a result, no program exists for uninsured men to receive prostate cancer testing, although there is a program in place for uninsured women to receive mammograms.

“The Secretary needs to be made aware of the manner in which decisions are being made at the federal level.  We are asking her to take a stand on prostate cancer which is a critical men’s health issue.”

Earlier this week, Secretary Sebelius publicly labeled the USPSTF “an outside independent panel of doctors and scientists who … do not set federal policy and … don’t determine what services are covered by the federal government.” She was responding to the panel’s announcement that routine mammograms were not recommended until a woman reaches age 50.

ZERO has long maintained USPSTF is out of touch by failing to understand the importance of prostate cancer early detection. The USPSTF membership also has been questioned for its lack of medical specialists relating to specific men’s and women’s health conditions.

“If USPSTF doesn’t set policy or coverage decisions, as the Secretary states, then we want a thorough review of current decision-making practices so that changes can be made to address the need for prostate cancer services,” Lockwood said.  

Breast and prostate cancer data share strong similarities.  Each is the most frequently diagnosed noncutaneous cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death for their gender.  In 2009, new cases of each cancer were at about 194,000.  One in six men is struck with prostate cancer annually; for breast cancer, it’s one in eight women.
                                                                              

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