Lung Cancer Still Lowest in Feder...( Research Funding Per Death Drops ...),Health

Research Funding Per Death Drops More in 2007

WASHINGTON, May 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- While lung cancer causes one in three cancer deaths, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) invested less than 5% of its $4.8 billion budget in lung cancer research in 2007, according to updated statistics issued by Lung Cancer Alliance (LCA) today.

The two other federal agencies with significant cancer research programs -- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Department of Defense (DOD) -- have no money earmarked for lung cancer in 2007.

Expressed in dollars per death, research funding through these three federal sources in 2007 totaled $23,754 for breast cancer, $11,959 for prostate cancer and $5,500 for colon cancer. Lung cancer research spending was $1,414 per death, a 23% drop from $1,829 in research funding per death in 2005.

LCA President & CEO Laurie Fenton Ambrose said these statistics paint a clear picture. "Despite lung cancer's enormous death toll, lung cancer research is still not a priority for our public health policy decision makers."

"The lack of public awareness of the statistics and the stigma of smoking has been a shield for those making these decisions, who also know that lung cancer leaves few survivors to demand more federal research funding money," she said.

"To this we say: No More," said Fenton Ambrose, whose Washington D.C. based national organization is the only one dedicated exclusively to patient support and advocacy for those living with or at risk for lung cancer.

Lung cancer has the highest number of deaths and the highest death rate of all the cancers, taking more lives each year than breast, prostate, colon, kidney, and melanoma and liver cancers--combined.

"In addition, very few women even know that lung cancer will kill nearly twice as many women as breast cancer, that the number of women with lung cancer has soared or that one in every five women being diagnos
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