Research Foundation Salutes Stand Up to Cancer, Urges Improved Prostate Cancer Imaging

Research Foundation Salutes Stand Up to Cancer, Urges Improved Prostate Cancer
Imaging

WASHINGTON, Sept. 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Dr. Faina Shtern, President and
CEO of the non-profit AdMeTech Foundation and Director of Research at the
Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital Boston (CHB), Harvard Medical
School, today issued this statement on tonight's unprecedented television
event Stand Up To Cancer.

"My more than two decades of cancer research and advocacy has spanned the
world and brought me to this conclusion: cancer impacts all of us -
regardless of our country, race, gender or religion - and unless we all
support its diagnosis, treatment and cure, that will not change.

"We salute Stand Up To Cancer - and all of its participants and partners - for
its bold leadership in creating tonight's prime-time television event to raise
funds for the fight against cancer. We are pleased the funds from this event
will be used in an area of tremendous need - cancer research.

"September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. This is a particularly
important month for me as my father, like millions of other men in this
country, has prostate cancer, the most common major cancer in the United
States. Prostate cancer strikes a man every 2.5 minutes and kills a man every
18 minutes. It has become more common than even breast cancer, yet advanced
diagnostic imaging technologies comparable to life-saving mammograms remain
unavailable. While prostate cancer can be cured when diagnosed early, it
remains the second most lethal cancer in men. Indeed, current diagnostic tools
were recently demonstrated to cause more harm than good. Existing tests miss
cancers and/or underestimate their aggressiveness and lead to failed clinical
interventions in as many as 1 in 2 men, resulting in cancer progression and
ultimately, death. On the other hand, current screening with blood test PSA
leads to more than one million men undergoing unnecessary biopsies each year.
The extent of treatment which is administered unnecessarily while causing
life-altering complications is staggering, as well. This is a sad reality for
millions of American men who face screening for, or diagnosis of, prostate
cancer every year. Prostate cancer is particularly devastating for
African-American males who have significantly higher incidence and mortality
rates.

"We encourage all Americans to contribute to tonight's event, and urge the
U.S. Congress and federal government to provide adequate funding to overcome
the crisis of care caused by the lack of accurate diagnostic tools. Federal
support made it possible to advance breast cancer imaging, which transformed
early detection and treatment of breast cancer. As a nation, we must provide
similar possibilities for men."

The AdMeTech Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to improved
early diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. The organization develops
strategic partnerships with academia, advocacy, industry, and government to
facilitate development and implementation of accurate, affordable accessible
diagnostic tools for prostate cancer. For more information, log onto
www.admetech.org.

SOURCE AdMeTech Foundation

Sharon Pavlovsky, +1-202-350-6650, Sharon.pavlovsky@edelman.com, for AdMeTech
Foundation; or Dr. Faina Shtern of AdMeTech Foundation, +1-301-580-8100