Published on October 16, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Hayley Cooke
703-837-3692
Hayley.Cooke@preventcancer.org
Alexandra, Va. — President Trump recently signed an appropriations bill, HR 6157, greenlighting funding for the Departments of Labor, Defense, and Health and Human Services in fiscal year 2019. The bill includes $10 million dollars for melanoma research, funded through the Department of Defense (DoD).
Since 2009, DoD’s Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program (PRCRP) has funded different cancer topic areas to promote high-impact research for cancer prevention, detection, treatment and survivorship. The PRCRP focuses on cancers that are associated with or have a substantial impact on military personnel, veterans and family members, as well as the general public.
Each year in the United States, more than 87,000 people are diagnosed with melanoma and more than three million are diagnosed with non-melanoma skin cancer. Skin cancer disproportionately affects our military. In fact, according to the 2014 Military Medicine Study, the rate of new skin cancer cases among active duty military members between 2000 and 2007 was 62 percent greater than the general population.
“Melanoma is the most dangerous form of skin cancer, but it is largely preventable. This funding has the potential to make a lifesaving difference in skin cancer prevention and early detection,” said Carolyn Aldigé, CEO and founder of the Prevent Cancer Foundation®.
The Foundation is proud to stand with the National Council on Skin Prevention in support of federal funding for melanoma research. This news comes after our collective call on the House and Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee to support skin cancer research.
The Foundation looks forward to continued innovation in melanoma prevention, early detection and treatment as a result of this funding.
