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Special commission chair urges legislature to act on pancreatic cancer recommendations
Summary
Brock Cordero, chair of the Special Legislative Commission to Study Pancreatic Cancer, urged the Joint Committee on Public Health to pass H.2432/S.1484, which would implement the commission's recommendations on awareness, early detection and a coordinated state initiative.
Brock Cordero, who chaired the Special Legislative Commission to Study Pancreatic Cancer, told the Joint Committee on Public Health that H.2432/S.1484 would implement the commission’s final recommendations and could improve early detection and patient outcomes.
"Pancreatic cancer is considered to be one of the toughest cancers faced both in the Commonwealth ... and across the United States," Cordero said in testimony that summarized the commission’s report. He urged lawmakers to act quickly because, he said, time is rarely on the side of pancreatic cancer patients and families.
Cordero told the committee the legislation has 88 publicly identified cosponsors — 20 senators and 68 representatives — and cited survival statistics presented in the commission’s final report: a stagnant five‑year survival rate near 13 percent and high short‑term mortality after diagnosis. He recommended an awareness campaign focused on early detection and establishment of a comprehensive pancreatic cancer initiative within the Department of Public Health.
Committee members received the testimony and acknowledged the bill’s prior favorable reporting in committee work on cancer initiatives. No formal action was taken during the hearing; the testimony was part of the record for the committee’s deliberations.
