HR 100 — A Resolution designating the month of March 2025 as "Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania.

PRINTER'S NO.   837

                  THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



           HOUSE RESOLUTION
              No. 100
                                                 Session of
                                                   2025

     INTRODUCED BY MIHALEK, REICHARD, ZIMMERMAN, VENKAT, BURGOS,
        PICKETT, GILLEN, DEASY AND WARREN, MARCH 4, 2025

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, MARCH 4, 2025


                                  A RESOLUTION
 1   Designating the month of March 2025 as "Colorectal Cancer
 2      Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania.
 3      WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is cancer in either the colon or
 4   the rectum; and
 5      WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is usually related to polyps which
 6   form in the colon or rectum and can spread through nearby
 7   tissues or lymph nodes and possibly spread to other organs; and
 8      WHEREAS, Symptoms of colorectal cancer can include blood in
 9   or on stool, stomach pain, aches or cramps that do not go away
10   and unexplained weight loss; and
11      WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is a serious diagnosis that can
12   upend a person's life; and
13      WHEREAS, One in 24 people will be diagnosed with colorectal
14   cancer in their lifetime; and
15      WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly
16   diagnosed cancer; and
17      WHEREAS, In 2025, an estimated 154,270 new cases of
18   colorectal cancer will be diagnosed in the United States; and
 1         WHEREAS, A colonoscopy is the gold standard of colon cancer
 2   screening because the procedure can both diagnose colon cancer
 3   and remove polyps that can become cancerous; and
 4         WHEREAS, A colonoscopy limits the likelihood of new cases of
 5   colon cancer by 69% and reduces the chance of dying by 88%; and
 6         WHEREAS, The Department of Health recommends that a person be
 7   screened for colorectal cancer between 45 and 75 years of age,
 8   as the risk of developing colorectal cancer increases with age;
 9   and
10         WHEREAS, Just 66% of Pennsylvania adults over 45 years of age
11   have been screened for colorectal cancer; and
12         WHEREAS, Screening for colorectal cancer is important because
13   symptoms may not be present, especially in early stages; and
14         WHEREAS, Sixty-eight percent of deaths from colorectal cancer
15   could be prevented with screening; and
16         WHEREAS, The five-year survival rate of localized colorectal
17   cancer is 90%; and
18         WHEREAS, There are more than 1.5 million colorectal cancer
19   survivors in the United States; and
20         WHEREAS, Some patients with colorectal cancer have a
21   temporary or permanent stoma, or opening in the abdomen,
22   following surgery and an estimated 750,000 to 1,000,000
23   Americans have an ostomy; and
24         WHEREAS, Rates of colorectal cancer are different across race
25   and ethnicity; and
26         WHEREAS, Black Americans are 20% more likely to have
27   colorectal cancer and 40% more likely to die from it; and
28         WHEREAS, Native communities face the highest rate of cases
29   out of any ethnic group; and
30         WHEREAS, Incidence rates for colorectal cancer have declined

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 1   more than 50% between 1985 and 2020; and
 2      WHEREAS, Despite the decline in this disease over the past
 3   four decades, colorectal cancer is still the second most deadly
 4   cancer in this Commonwealth; and
 5      WHEREAS, Among the top five most deadly cancers, colorectal
 6   cancer is the only one that does not have its own research
 7   program and dedicated funding stream; therefore be it
 8      RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate the
 9   month of March 2025 as "Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month" in
10   Pennsylvania.




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