Cancer Survivors, Doctors Tell Panel of Successes of 1971 Law

A Boston television reporter recalled for a House subcommittee Tuesday how she was found to have cancer five days before her wedding, when a mole on her leg turned out to be melanoma.

Several years later came a diagnosis of ovarian cancer and the removal of an ovary. The following year, the cancer returned, and Joyce Kulhawik lost her uterus and her hope of having children.

Yet today Kulhawik considers herself lucky. Early cancer detection saved her life three times, she told members of the House Energy and Commerce health subcommittee, who are reviewing the results of the National Cancer Act on its 20th anniversary.

“Each time I’ve had cancer, some new treatment, some new drug, some new information has altered the course of the disease,” she said.

Kulhawik was one of several cancer survivors and doctors who lauded the successes of the 1971 cancer act, which supported cancer research and treatment and the training of thousands of scientists.

But all the witnesses noted that the fight against the disease is far from over.

Noting that 1 million Americans will contract cancer this year at a cost in medical treatment of more than $80 billion, subcommittee Chairman Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) added: “We cannot be satisfied that the objectives of the National Cancer Act have been achieved until early detection screening tests and state-of-the-art treatment are available to and utilized by every American.”

To that end, Sen. Connie Mack (R-Fla.), who also testified Tuesday, has introduced legislation to make screening tests available to more Americans by providing tax credits to individuals and health-care providers.

He said that the proposed legislation was prompted by his and his family’s experiences with the disease.

Mack underwent surgery three years ago to remove a melanoma from his side. His mother is a 12-year survivor of breast cancer and his daughter has combatted cervical cancer. Next week his wife, Priscilla, will have surgery for breast cancer. Because of early detection, Mrs. Mack said that she has more than a 90% chance of survival.

Not of all of Mack’s family members won their battles with cancer, however. His brother, Michael McGillicuddy, died of the disease in 1979 at age 35.

Another public figure to testify was Rep. Rose DeLauro (D-Conn.), who has survived ovarian cancer for five years. DeLauro made a plea for more funding for the nation’s primary cancer research facility, the National Cancer Institute.

Actor Jack Klugman, best known for his roles on “The Odd Couple” and “Quincy,” spoke in a raspy voice of his battle with throat cancer.

“Early detection is everything,” Klugman said.