An Important Statement From America’s Prostate Cancer Advocacy Groups

Sitemaster — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 12:43:58 +0000

The Prostate Cancer Mission joined with 13 other major US prostate advocacy organizations to issue a joint statement this morning. The statement is in response to the publication of two articles on screening for prostate cancer, which appeared last week in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A JOINT STATEMENT FROM AMERICA’S PROSTATE CANCER
ADVOCACY, EDUCATION, AND SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONS

Since 1993, when the PLCO trial was started, we have awaited the results of this trial with eager anticipation, as have others. The initial report of the results of this study — and those of a comparable European trial — published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine have told us two things:

The studies offer conflicting evidence about the possibility of a prostate cancer-specific survival benefit associated with the regular use of prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing and digital rectal examination (DRE).
These studies provide no convincing evidence that mass screening of men over 50 or 55 years of age will lead to a prostate cancer-specific survival benefit within 10 years.

We have come together to make two clear statements about these trials:

Above all we thank the patients, the investigators, and the national authorities that funded these two trials for their efforts. The development and implementation of these trials over the past 16 years has been an enormous commitment by all concerned.
We enthusiastically support the continued follow-up of patients in the prostate cancer arm of the PLCO study for at least a further 5 years, through 2014, as originally envisaged.

In addition, in the long-term interests of the health of every man in the USA, and with health reform recognized as a national priority, we wish to state the following:

Every man, regardless of his age, has the right to know whether he is at risk from prostate cancer, a disease that still kills over 28,600 American men every year, and many more around the world. We encourage all men to be proactive, and to seek out information and support in regard to their health.
We shall continue to encourage every man to discuss his individual risk for prostate cancer with his doctors, and to request the appropriate use of PSA and DRE tests until better options are available. Further clinical action based on results of these tests is also a matter for serious discussion between each patient and his physicians.
We call upon the federal government to emphasize the need for more research into early detection technologies and methods that will lead to better and more accurate diagnosis of prostate cancer.
We call upon Congress to increase funding for the Prostate Cancer Research Program at the Department of Defense.
We call upon the National Institutes of Health to increase funding for prostate cancer research through the National Cancer Institute.
We call upon the medical research community to place greater emphasis on the development of new clinical tests that can differentiate between those men at greatest need for aggressive prostate cancer treatment and those with indolent forms of the disease who can be well managed without invasive treatment.

The statement above was approved by the Prostate Cancer Mission and by the other following US-based prostate cancer advocacy, education, and support organizations:

The Second Open Conversation — Book Now!

Arnon Krongrad, MD — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 16:03:08 +0000

The Prostate Cancer Mission’s 2009 Open Conversation is set to take place on Saturday May 9. The program starts at 8:30 AM and will run to 12:30 PM. This year’s program will feature invited expert presenters, panel discussion, and breakout participation sessions. It will be held at FIU’s Kovens Conference Center in North Miami. To get the details, just click here.

Prostate Cancer Mission Appoints Caribbean Task Force Leader

Arnon Krongrad, MD — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 18:53:13 +0000

Prostate cancer is very common in the Caribbean. The Prostate Cancer Mission recognizes the need for more knowledge among Caribbean populations in the Caribbean, in South Florida, and farther. We are now pleased to announce the appointment of our first Caribbean Task Force leader, Patrick Baxter. He will be in charge of developing and inplementing education programs for linguistically and culturally varied populations of the Caribbean.

Prostate Cancer Mission Receives Support From The Brunetti Foundation

Arnon Krongrad, MD — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 22:41:50 +0000

Immediately upon the appointment of Mary Lynn Potenteau as Executive Director, The Brunetti Foundation has presented the Prostate Cancer Mission financial support in the amount of $25,000, said PCM Chairman Arnon Krongrad, MD.

The gift represents the single biggest donation to date and will be used to fund initial operating expenses. The gift reflects a growing willingness of South Florida and global communities to coalesce in the effort to reduce the burden of prostate cancer. Said a Brunetti Foundation spokesman: “It’s time to focus on the most common cancer of men and work together. We support the Prostate Cancer Mission in its effort to lead the way.”

Prostate Cancer Mission Appoints First Executive Director

Sitemaster — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:39:08 +0000

The Prostate Cancer Mission is pleased to announce the appointment of
Mary Lynn Potenteau as its first Executive Director. Ms. Potenteau has significant experience as a fund-raiser and development officer with not-for-profit organizations in the Miami area, including 5 years in senior positions at the University of Miami. She will be responsible for overseeing development and management of the Prostate Cancer Mission on a day-to-day basis.

Building Collaborative Partnerships

Arnon Krongrad, MD — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 01:35:35 +0000

The Prostate Cancer Mission is committed to developing collaborative partnerships with other members of the prostate cancer community.

As two examples of such collaboration, The Prostate Cancer Mission has already partnered with the following organizations:

The American Prostate Cancer Initiative, organizers of the annual Sneakers@Work Day, which was first coordinated in 2007 and will next occur on September 19, 2008

The “New” Prostate Cancer InfoLink and The “New” Prostate Cancer InfoLink Social Network focus on expanding and fostering knowledge about prostate cancer among patients and families around the world.

We look forward to further announcements of our collaborations with others in the near future.

New Prostate Cancer Mission Web Site

Arnon Krongrad, MD — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 01:34:02 +0000

The Prostate Cancer Mission launched its new web site on August 1, 2008.

A combination of blog and informational background, this site will keep our members, our supporters, and the global prostate cancer community up to date with the activities of the Mission over the next 12 months.

We have big plans and bigger goals. Stop by and see how we are doing.