Becky MacK Goes to Washington
Every
year, in the United States, more than one million people are diagnosed with
cancer and every year, more than 500,000 people die of cancer. That is one big ball of stunning,
unbelievable and scary to say the very least.
Those facts shouldn’t just scare you, though; they should catapult you
into action. When I was diagnosed with
Medullary thyroid cancer and learned that there was no cure for my disease,
suddenly whether or not clinical trials would be funded was important to
me. Suddenly, my priorities consisted of
things like making sure that treatments and healthcare would be available when
I needed them. The National Institute of
Health, comprehensive cancer centers and new drug developments became my
central focus.
That is why I involved myself with the American Cancer Society
Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN).
ACS CAN works with lawmakers to ensure that cancer
is a national priority. The organization
works every single day advocating for public policies in the United States that
are helping to put an end to cancer and cancer disparities. More
importantly to me, the organization gives me a loud, powerful and effective
voice. ACS CAN gives me knowledge in the
land of cancer legislation keeps me up to date on the latest laws that affect
cancer patients across the United States.
ACS CAN gives me options when my cancer tries to take them away.
On Tuesday, September 10th, 2013, I
joined ACS CAN’s staff and volunteers in Washington, D.C. Together, we covered our capital building in
a sea of blue ACS CAN shirts and advocated, educated and told our stories. A
total of 450 volunteers, including 256 cancer survivors attended 463 meetings
with lawmakers, demanding that cancer be seen as a national priority. I was fortunate enough to be a part of this
important lobby day and very loudly and proudly represented Florida’s 19th
Congressional district. Together, we asked for lawmakers to consider
three things:
First, we asked lawmakers to replace
funding for cancer research that was taken away when the sequestration occurred. Specifically, we asked that funding for the
National Institute of Health and the National Cancer Institute to be restored
and for continued funding for both cancer prevention and early detection at the
Center for Disease Control. I am living
with a type of cancer that does not have a complete, systemic cure and this
funding is essential for people like me because we depend heavily on cancer research
and clinical trials. Less funding means
less research, less drug development and less hope for my cure. Less funding means limited access to clinical
trials. Less funding means less lives
are saved. I will not accept that. It’s time for less cancer and more funding,
research and options.
Second, we asked lawmakers to
support legislation that encourages palliative care or quality of life,
something that has been proven to decrease healthcare costs and improve the
quality and length of life in cancer patients. When I met with members of Congress, I
explained to them that cancer comes with physical pain, nausea, anxiety and
emotional distress. Palliative care
involves addressing the needs of the whole patient, not just the disease and,
while palliative care does involve things like hospice and end of life care, it
doesn’t begin there. Medical
professionals make use of palliative care at the beginning of a patient’s diagnosis
and continue with it during treatment. Every
cancer patient has the right to be free of pain and nausea and to have his/her
entire self treated.
I will never forget laying in an MRI scan for
over an hour. I was required to lie
completely still the entire time, but all I did was worry and cry. I knew that the radiologist was looking for
tumors and I panicked at the thought. I
couldn’t stay still and as I sobbed, my entire body shook. Because I was moving so much, we had to
repeat the procedure the following week.
This time, the nurse offered to give me something to calm down and rest
before the procedure began. Repeating
the procedure unnecessarily cost both me and the hospital more money. Had someone addressed my emotional needs the first
time, it not only would have saved money, it would have helped my anxiety and
saved time. That is palliative
care. Yes, we need to treat the cancer,
but we also need to consider every other aspect of a cancer patient’s
experience.
Finally, we requested that
Congress increase the federal cigarette tax by 94 cents. An increase in the federal cigarette tax has
been proven to deter youth from smoking and decrease healthcare costs. I recently learned that for every pack of
cigarettes a smoker purchases, it adds $10.47 to the United States
economy. Nothing, and I mean absolutely
nothing, good comes from smoking a cigarette or using any type of tobacco
product.
It isn't just research
that is going to help find cures for people like me. It is also the public policies that allow for
the implementation and funding of that research. Know what’s happening in your community. Demand that your lawmakers at the local,
state and federal levels are paying attention to their constituents, people
that are affected by this disease every single day. Let’s hold them accountable. I know I will.
