Section 104312 Of Chapter 6. The Prostate Cancer Act Of 1998 From California Health And Safety Code >> Division 103. >> Part 1. >> Chapter 6.
104312
. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) California has the highest incidence of and death from
prostate cancer, and due to the increased public awareness of the
disease, the timing is appropriate to establish programs for prostate
cancer education and early detection services for uninsured men.
Despite the advances in the treatment and detection of prostate
cancer, the death rate of this disease continues to climb at an
alarming rate--a rate higher than breast cancer and many other high
profile diseases.
(b) Approximately 200,000 new cases of prostate cancer will be
diagnosed this year.
(c) Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men.
(d) Prostate cancer has led to an estimated 38,000 deaths
nationally in 1994 and is the second-leading cause of cancer death in
men.
(e) Nationally, the incidence of prostate cancer increased 50
percent between 1980 and 1990.
(f) Prostate cancer diagnosis in California nearly doubled over
the five-year period covered by the recently published California
Cancer Registry, from 11,900 new cases in 1988 to 22,200 in 1992. The
age-adjusted incidence rate increased by 65 percent, from 98.6 new
cases per 100,000 males in 1988 to 163 in 1992.
(g) African Americans have a 30 percent higher risk of developing
prostate cancer than whites, which is the highest risk of any race or
ethnic group.
(h) About 60 percent of all prostate cancers are discovered before
they have spread.
(i) The cure rate for prostate cancer, if detected before
metastasis, is 84 percent.
(j) The majority of commercial managed care plans offer prostate
cancer screening for their members.
(k) The employment of prostate-specific antigen assays as common
medical practice within suspect categories will enhance early
detection of prostate cancer.