Wayne Swan MP: LABOR ANNOUNCES FUNDS FOR PROSTATE CANCER RESEARCH Australia

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http://www.swanmp.org/swanmp/2007/10/labor-announces.html

LABOR ANNOUNCES FUNDS FOR PROSTATE CANCER RESEARCH

25 October 2007

Federal Labor has announced it will set up two dedicated prostate cancer

research centres to develop improved diagnostic tests and treatments for

prostate cancer. 

Prostate cancer kills nearly 3,000 Australian men each year, with our local

community among those affected. 

The centres will develop improved diagnostic and screening tools as well new

treatments for prostate cancer. 

There are currently no research centres dedicated to researching the

diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, even though an estimated 18,700

cases were reported in 2006.

The centres will concentrate on:

••Developing non-invasive diagnostic tests to detect the presence of

prostate cancer and reliably differentiate between slow growing and

aggressive forms of the disease;

••Developing new therapies targeting the molecular mechanisms that enable

prostate cancers to resist current drug treatment; and

••Accurate identification of markers which will help predict treatment

response. 

Since fully recovering from successful surgery for prostate cancer in 2001 I

have worked to raise the awareness of this cancer in our local community and

across Australia.

I was shocked when I was diagnosed with prostate cancer but I should not

have been. 

This announcement is a step towards effectively dealing with the scourge of

prostate cancer 

The initiatives announced this week follow Federal Labor's commitments to:

••Boost cancer clinical trials;

••Screen all 50 year olds for bowel cancer. 

These commitments form part of Labor's $2 billion National Health Reform

Plan to fix our hospitals and deliver better health services for the

community.