Statement of Senator Patrick Leahy on the VOICE campaign

July 7, 1994

The VOICE campaign is about people speaking out. It is about Vermonters who face the terrible consequences of cancer and want to be better prepared for the battle.

For any family, confronting cancer means a lot of questions, and often, getting answers can be overwhelming. Where do I get the best treatment? Are there other Vermonters going through the same thing with whom we can talk? What steps can I take to prevent cancer for myself and my family? These are the questions we are committed to answering. This is the purpose of our campaign.

The Vermont Outreach and Information for Cancer Education (VOICE) campaign brings together the National Cancer Institute and its Cancer Information Service (CIS) with the Vermont Cancer Center, the Breast Cancer Network, the Cancer Wellness Center, the Vermont Department of Health, the Vermont division of the American Cancer Society, and Friends of Joanne Rathgeb to provide a statewide network of services to at-risk Vermonters.

1-800-4-CANCER is the password that will link Vermonters with trained specialists who can navigate callers through a maze of questions and specific concerns relating to cancer. This toll-free number at the CIS will offer an array of services and referrals to every Vermonter, including information about early detection for cancer, clinical trials and treatment programs, support care and Vermont-funded cancer prevention activities to name a few.

Vermont's strong and dedicated community of cancer advocates and specialists are here today to launch the VOICE campaign. It is through this partnership and our coordinated efforts that we can best share the work, advice and valuable information with those who need it most -- Vermonters at-risk.

Two years ago, Congressman Sanders and I introduced legislation to establish a national cancer registries program so states like Vermont could create a registry to track important information about Vermont cancer patients. In addition to the registries, our legislation commissioned a five-year, six million dollar study on the elevated breast cancer mortality rates in the Northeast/mid-Atlantic region. This study is up and running, and we expect some results in the next year.

The Northeast/mid-Atlantic study is important because of the increased information we can gather about cancer-producing substances. That is why Congressman Sanders and I asked the National Cancer Institute to make information about this region-specific study available to those people it will directly affect. Service specialists at the CIS toll-free number now will be able to answer questions and provide information about the study, how many participants will be involved and the subjects of investigation.

But I want to take this effort even further. I want every Vermonter faced with any form of cancer to have the sharpest tools available to fight this deadly disease. The VOICE campaign's network can make this happen.

I am proud to be here today with fellow Vermonters who are lending their voices and their efforts to this initiative. Congressman Sanders has been a tireless advocate for a community-based approach to preventing and controlling cancer. I want to thank Joan MacKenzie and the Vermont Cancer Center for hosting the send-off for this campaign. I applaud the National Cancer Institute and its Cancer Information Service and I appreciate the efforts of Pat Barr from the Breast Cancer Network, Dolores Drolette and Peg Allen from the Cancer Wellness Center, Joanne Rathgeb, Jean Ewing from the Department of Health and Bill Lloyd from the American Cancer Society who helped to make this all possible.

Dr. Samuel Broder, director of the National Cancer Institute, said it well in a letter endorsing the VOICE campaign. He said "working together, utilizing our combined talents and resources, we can hope to make real progress in our fight against cancer."