Congratulating Nancy Goodman Brinker for receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of this bipartisan Special Order on the subject of breast cancer awareness.

Mr. Speaker, tonight, like so many times before, I stand with my friends and colleagues on both sides of the aisle to address an issue that is both personal and universal.

As you may know, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. It is a privilege to be with fellow survivors and advocates celebrating 25 years of breast health awareness education and empowerment.

Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in women ages 15 to 54 according to the National Cancer Institute. In 2009 alone, the American National Cancer Society estimates that there will be 194,280 new cases of breast

cancer across the nation, and 40,610 of these Americans will die from the disease.

Although these statistics may seem discouraging, we have made significant progress. Steady declines in breast cancer mortality among women since 1990 have been attributed to a combination of early detection and improvements in treatment. When breast cancer is detected at early stages, the survival rate for women is 98 percent. Simply stated, many of these improvements would not have happened without Breast Cancer Awareness Month and its focus on research, education and awareness which increase early diagnoses and save lives.

On a personal level, I know the importance of early detection. Nearly 2 years ago, after I found a lump in my breast while doing a self exam in the shower, my doctor diagnosed me with breast cancer. I had just turned 41. Having been a legislator for more than 17 years and having passed breast cancer legislation, I knew a lot about breast cancer. I knew the importance of early detection, clinical exams every 3 years after age 20, every year after 40, mammograms every year after 40, and yet for all that I knew, I soon realized how much I didn't know. I knew about the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations, the so-called breast cancer genes, but I didn't know that some women were more likely to have the mutation. I didn't know that even with no immediate family history of breast cancer, as an Ashkenazi Jew I was five times more likely to have the mutation or that I would have up to an 85 percent lifetime chance of getting breast cancer and up to a 60 percent chance of getting ovarian cancer.

I knew that young women can and do get breast cancer. But like a lot of young women, I didn't know just how many of us it touches. And after talking with health care providers, survivors and advocates, it became clear that many other young women did not know these things either. Despite our seeming wealth of knowledge on breast cancer, an astounding 40 percent of young women with breast cancer said that prior to their diagnosis, they did not know that a young woman could get breast cancer.

That's why on March 26, cancer-free and determined to be among the last young women who did not know enough about breast cancer, I introduced H.R. 1740, the Breast Cancer Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act, or the EARLY Act. And just this morning, the Energy and Commerce Committee's Health subcommittee held a hearing on this critical legislation as well as several other important breast cancer legislation.

The EARLY Act is designed to educate young women and their physicians about breast health and provide support for young women diagnosed with breast cancer. Young women must learn to be their own voices, to speak up for themselves and know when they need to go to their doctor, because at the end of the day the old saying rings true, ``knowledge is power.'' And when the EARLY Act becomes law, we will fulfill the vital goals of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, increasing education, research and awareness all year long.

However, research, education and awareness are not all that we focus on when it comes to Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We must also take this opportunity to honor and recognize the people close to us who have won their fight against breast cancer, those still fighting, those we have lost, and those who are working hard every day to make sure no one else dies from breast cancer.

We honor the determination of those women and the hope that their courage gives us all. It is an honor to be here tonight, standing together in solidarity as we observe Breast Cancer Awareness Month, wholly committed to increasing early diagnoses, saving more lives and ultimately finding a cure to wipe out this deadly disease. Together, we will save more of our moms, our sisters, our grandmas, our daughters and our loved ones. We can and will empower women to learn the facts, know their bodies, speak up for their health and embrace support.

Mr. Speaker, I am particularly pleased tonight in an environment in which sometimes, in fact too recently, we struggle to do almost anything in a bipartisan fashion, and the intensity and the fervor in which we engage in debate here often prevents us from coming together. The Members of the House of Representatives truly came together today in support and in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. They came together in honor of women who have passed away from breast cancer, in honor of survivors, in honor of women still fighting the disease.

It is my privilege to yield to and introduce my very good friend, fellow breast cancer survivor, someone who has been there for me even before I shared my own story publicly, Congresswoman Sue Myrick, the gentlelady from North Carolina.

Mr. Speaker, the gentlelady from North Carolina (Mrs. Myrick) has been such a passionate advocate on behalf of all cancer patients. As the co-Chair of the Congressional Cancer Caucus, she has

done an absolutely incredible job at raising awareness not just about breast cancer but about all types of cancer. I think, given how much cancer has touched Americans' lives in a very personal way, it's important that we have local advocates like Sue Myrick, and it's my privilege to be side by side with you as cosponsors of the EARLY Act. Thank you so much.

It's now my privilege to yield 4 minutes to the gentlelady from California, Lois Capps, who has a health care professional background as an RN, prior to her election to Congress, and has been one of the leading voices in women's health in the House of Representatives.

Thank you so much. Again, the gentlelady from California, Lois Capps, has been just one of the most outstanding health care advocates in the Congress. I knew about her advocacy and her leadership in health care even before I arrived in Congress in 2004, and it is a privilege to serve with you. It truly is.

It's now my privilege to yield 2 minutes to a woman who has recently joined the Congress, was elected in the class of 2008, worked hard to get here and has been doing a fantastic job, served in the Nevada State Senate as the State Senate minority leader and is a good friend of mine, Congresswoman Dina Titus from the great State of Nevada.

Thank you so much, Congresswoman Titus. Your leadership and the fact that you've joined the Congress added another woman to our ranks. Women's health and making sure that we can focus the attention and the agenda on women's health here in the United States House of Representatives is so incredibly important. We already have a sort of head cheerleader, so to speak, although I don't mean to trivialize her position. But the first woman, Speaker of the House of Representatives, has been a passionate advocate for women's health and has always encouraged making sure that we have more women join our ranks. You've done an incredible job since you've been here. I'm so pleased that you've joined us in the House of Representatives.

Mr. Speaker, I want to spend a couple of minutes just highlighting some unique facts that, really, most people are unaware of when it comes to breast cancer. What I've learned since my own diagnosis and since getting involved in a more personal way in trying to pass the EARLY Act is--we all hear the expression, Everyone knows someone who

has breast cancer. Well, today we really can say that everyone had someone close to them that had breast cancer.

It's just amazing after I shared my own story how many--I was standing there in the well the day that I shared my story with folks, and I can't tell you how many Members came up to me and touched my arm and said, Debbie, my daughter had breast cancer, my mother, my sister, my wife. People stopping me on the street, on the airplane, on the ball field with my kids. It's amazing. The outpouring of people reaching out to connect with me has just been absolutely incredible, because breast cancer touches so many people and touches women in a very personal way. But what's really frustrating about breast cancer is how it strikes certain populations in a more deadly way.

Another thing that I realized is that there are higher risk populations that too often are unaware of their risk. Like me, as an Ashkenazi Jewish woman, I was not really aware of my risk of having a greater likelihood of carrying the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation. Subsequently when I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I did a genetic blood test and found out that I am a carrier of the BRCA2 gene. But in doing research for the EARLY Act, the statistics that I learned about African American women and breast cancer were really startling.

African American women have the highest breast cancer death rate among minority women. It's 34 per 100,000 people in the population, African American women from ages 35 to 44. So younger African American women have a breast cancer death rate more than twice the rate of white women in the same age group, and they are 34 percent more likely to die of cancer than are whites, and more than twice as likely to die of cancer as are Asians or Pacific Islanders, American Indians or Hispanics.

We have got to raise awareness in higher-risk populations and minority populations, and we have to change the disparity, the disparity in the survival rate and the disparity in terms of access to health care for their populations, because we know that early detection is the key.

At this time, to talk some more about that, is a very good friend of mine, another newly elected Member from the great State of Pennsylvania, professionally a dietitian before she was elected to Congress, a small business owner, and most importantly, a mother of five. I now yield 3 minutes to the gentlelady from Pennsylvania, Kathy Dahlkemper.

Thank you so much, Congresswoman Dahlkemper. Again, it was a thrill to see you come to the House of Representatives and add your expertise, particularly as a dietician, and thank you for sharing those personal stories from your district in Pennsylvania.

The important thing about Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and when we talk about breast cancer it is putting a face on it, helping people to understand, because so often statistics are really easy to just kind of glaze over and stop paying attention to.

Here tonight to help us continue to raise awareness is the gentlewoman from southern California, Susan Davis, who has made health care a signature issue during her time in both the California Assembly as well as the United States House of Representatives, a member of the Education and Labor Committee, one of the three committees in the House of Representatives that passed part of the health care reform legislation, and she has also been a leader by pushing for billions of dollars in funding for NIH.

I yield to the gentlewoman from California.

Thank you very much.

It's now my privilege to introduce and yield to a gentleman who is, again, another recent addition to the House of Representatives, elected in November of 2008, someone who I have really seen exercise incredible leadership since his election to the United States Congress, and apparently the token man here tonight. So it's really especially wonderful that he has joined us.

Steve Driehaus hails from Ohio and is the former minority whip in the Ohio House of Representatives. He is also a former Peace Corps volunteer, which, to me, that kind of altruism and volunteerism is so incredibly admirable. He is the father of three young children, whom I know he is most proud of.

It's my pleasure to yield to him on behalf of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Thank you so much, Mr. Driehaus. Again, it has absolutely been a privilege to work with you since you joined us in the House of Representatives. You've been really doing an incredible job, and I appreciate especially your taking time out of your evening, especially late in the evening, 9 o'clock at night, to help raise awareness about the importance for women to focus on their breast health and to help women and men be focused on breast cancer awareness in this month of October and all throughout the year.

It's now my privilege to introduce someone whom I have come to know over the last number of years and whose district I have traveled to on a number of occasions and whose leadership I've seen demonstrated both in her hometown of Columbus as well as here on the floor of the House. She served as a former school board member in Franklin County, a former county commissioner in Franklin County, and now serves in the United States House of Representatives with distinction.

I yield to the gentlelady from Ohio, Mary Jo Kilroy.

Thank you so much, Congresswoman Kilroy. It is so wonderful to serve in the House of Representatives with you, and as someone who has recently shared her personal health care battle and highlighted the need for health care reform as a reflection of your own personal story, I really just admire your courage. And it's been an incredible privilege to work with you. Thank you so much.

It's now my privilege to introduce not only my friend but my next- door neighbor in Washington, D.C., a woman who has been a passionate advocate, a fighter--really you look in the dictionary and look up the word ``fighter'' and ``passion'' and Shelley Berkley is right there.

She served prior to her election to Congress in the Nevada State Assembly. And I would like some credit for pronouncing ``Nevada'' correctly. So I want to pat myself on the back for that. Ms. Berkley served on the Nevada State Community College Board of Regents as well. She is the mom of two wonderful sons, both of whom I've met and who have done her proud.

And it's my privilege to yield time to her tonight for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Thank you, Congresswoman Berkley for your leadership and for your friendship and for your neighborliness.

At this time I would like to yield to the gentlelady from North Carolina who will yield to some colleagues who have joined us on her side of the aisle.

Thank you very much, Mr. Cao, for joining us this evening. Again, this has been a bipartisan Special Order, as well as male, female, a combination of devotion to making sure that the women in our lives and the 1 percent of men that are diagnosed with breast cancer every year are more aware of the importance of focusing on their breast health.

It is now my privilege to yield time to the gentleman from Illinois who is celebrating a birthday today. That is particularly exciting, and we appreciate him coming down to help raise awareness about the importance of breast cancer on his birthday. He is a father of two. Prior to his election to Congress last year to fill an unexpired term of the former Speaker, he was a scientist, a very successful and learned scientist, and has added incredible expertise to the discussion and debate we have here in the House of Representatives, Mr. Foster from Illinois.

Thank you so much, and happy birthday.

It is now my privilege in the last couple of minutes before we yield back, in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, to yield time to the gentlewoman from northern California who is a passionate fighter on behalf of the causes that she and her constituents care about, Lynn Woolsey.

Thank you so much. As Ms. Woolsey steps away from the podium, I really want to acknowledge her leadership, particularly on young women breast cancer issues because prior to my introduction of the EARLY Act, she was one of the leading voices on breast cancer in young women, and we can't thank her enough.

Mr. Speaker, as our hour comes to a close, I want to thank Congresswoman Myrick for her leadership and her friendship. I think the point we want to make tonight is that although Breast Cancer Awareness Month is celebrated throughout the entire month of October, it is important for us to focus on breast cancer awareness and for women to focus on their breast health throughout the year.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 708) congratulating Nancy Goodman Brinker for receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and add any extraneous materials.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, I am proud to present H. Res. 708 for consideration. This legislation expresses our congratulations to Ms. Nancy Goodman Brinker for receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

House Resolution 708 was introduced by my colleague and friend Representative Aaron Schock of Illinois on July 31, 2009, and was favorably reported out of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee by voice vote on December 10, 2009. In addition, the legislation enjoys the support of nearly 60 Members of Congress.

Mr. Speaker, seeing that my colleague is the lead sponsor of this, I will reserve the balance of my time and allow the gentleman to offer this resolution.

I thank the gentleman for his remarks.

As was noted, on August 12, 2009, President Obama awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is our Nation's highest civilian honor, to Ambassador Nancy Goodman Brinker in recognition of her efforts to advance breast cancer awareness and research. As noted by the President during the 2009 Medal of Freedom ceremony, the life of Nancy Goodman Brinker serves truly to answer the question whether one person can truly make a difference.

It is correct, as the gentleman from Illinois has noted, that this began as a promise between sisters. As she was falling victim to breast cancer, Susan G. Komen asked her beloved sister, Nancy, to promise to do everything she could to ensure that other families battling breast cancer had the help they needed to fight the deadly disease. From that simple promise between sisters, and in the honor of her sister, Ambassador Brinker has devoted her life to advancing breast cancer awareness and research.

In 1982, 2 years following her sister's passing, Ambassador Brinker, a breast cancer survivor herself, established Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a global nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting breast cancer research, a program that has affected millions of families in America. Notably, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, which also serves as the world's largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists, has raised nearly $1.5 billion to support advancements in breast cancer research, education, and health services since its inception. From its advocacy at the local, State, and Federal levels in support of enhanced breast cancer screening and treatment programs to its coordination with local health groups around the world to assist women in nearly 200 countries in overcoming social, cultural, and economic barriers to breast health treatment, Susan G. Komen for the Cure stands as a testament to the bravery of Susan G. Komen, as well as the commitment and vision of Ambassador Brinker.

As noted by Ambassador Brinker, Susan G. Komen for the Cure faced an immediate uphill battle in its mission to promote breast cancer awareness and research. In 1982, the disease received scant media attention and the fight against breast cancer was hampered by scarce resources, an inadequate supply network, and limited treatment options. However, under the dedicated and creative leadership of Ambassador Brinker, the breast cancer movement has managed to break the silence surrounding the disease and secure major advances with respect to breast cancer research, funding, education, and treatment.

In 1982, Ambassador Brinker founded the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, which is big in my district and is presently the world's largest and most successful education and fundraising event for breast cancer. In addition, Ambassador Brinker has also pioneered the concept of cause-related marketing, through which her foundation has established a variety of strong and enduring partnerships with businesses that share her commitment to ending breast cancer. Annually, the foundation raises over $30 million through its marketing partnerships.

Moreover, Ambassador Brinker and her foundation have played an instrumental role in securing the passage of key legislation to promote public investment in breast health and breast cancer care. Most recently, the organization contributed to the passage of an amendment authored by Senator Barbara Mikulski of Maryland to the Senate health care reform bill to ensure that breast cancer screening is available for women between the ages of 40 and 49. As noted by Ambassador Brinker, she will continue her efforts until the amendment becomes law.

In addition to her work on behalf of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Ambassador Brinker's commitment to ending breast cancer can be witnessed through her service as Goodwill Ambassador For Cancer Control for the United Nation's World Health Organization. In this capacity, Ambassador Brinker has sought to raise breast cancer awareness and strengthen treatment programs in impoverished nations as well as advocate in support of stronger global action for cancer prevention in accordance with the global strategy for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases that was endorsed by the World Health Assembly in 2008.

Mr. Speaker, in light of Ambassador Brinker's tireless efforts on behalf of ending breast cancer and her distinguished public service, it is not surprising that she was named as one of our Nation's Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients for 2009. Let us congratulate Ambassador Brinker on her receipt of our Nation's highest civilian honor and commemorate her life's worth through the passage of H. Res. 708.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H. Res. 708.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, again I urge my colleagues to join Mr. Schock of Illinois in congratulating Ms. Nancy Goodman Brinker on receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom through the passage of H. Res. 708.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to extend my appreciation to my friend from Massachusetts. I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, we rise today to honor a great woman, a great leader, and, really, an icon in our country and around the world for what the power of one person, working with hundreds and thousands of others, but really one person's vision, tenacity, and hard work can mean for her fellow mankind on Earth.

We rise today to honor Nancy Goodman Brinker. She was born December 6, 1946, in Peoria, Illinois, and is most notably known for her work with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation, the world's leading breast cancer grassroots organization, which has impacted millions of lives.

This organization was established in memory of her sister, Susie Komen, who passed away from cancer in 1980. Ms. Brinker since then has also founded the Susan G. Komen for the Cure's signature program, the Race for the Cure, the largest series of 5-K run and fitness walks in the world.

Since its origin in 1983 in Dallas, Texas, the Race for the Cure series has grown from one local race with 800 participants to a national series of 112 races that yielded just over 1.5 million participants last year.

Ms. Brinker's contributions to society extend beyond her work with the Susan G. Komen centers. Ms. Brinker has served in the government as Chair of the President's Cancer Panel in the early 1990s. She then went as the U.S. Ambassador to Hungary from 2001 to 2003, and then as the Chief of Protocol for the United States from 2007 to 2009.

Time magazine in 2008 named her as one of the 100 most influential people in the entire world. In July, 2009, President Obama named Nancy Goodman Brinker as a recipient of the 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Presidential Medal of Freedom, of course, is America's highest civilian honor that is awarded to individuals who make an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interest of the United States, world peace, cultural, or other significant public or private endeavors. She was presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Wednesday, August 12, 2009. The inscription on her Presidential Medal of Freedom says this: Drawing strength from tragedy, Nancy Goodman Brinker has transformed the Nation's approach to breast cancer.

When her sister was diagnosed in 1977, most breast cancer victims knew relatively little about the disease and suffered from popular stigmas. Nancy Brinker promised to challenge these norms. She founded Susan G. Komen for the Cure in honor of her sister. Today, the organization supports research and community awareness programs across the United States and around the world. Nancy Goodman Brinker's unique passion and determination have been a blessing to all those whose lives have been touched by breast cancer. In fact, it's these 1.5 million participants in the Race for the Cure and the thousands of people that this organization have touched that have led to the increased awareness of breast cancer. It's her work that has led to the infamous pastel pink being synonymous with breast cancer awareness and the work of the organization.

But let us be clear. The work has done much more then just create awareness about breast cancer research. Nancy Goodman Brinker's work has saved lives. In fact, the work of the Susan G. Komen Centers has generated over its 27 years $1.5 billion in cancer research. As a result, we have discovered the first breast cancer susceptibility gene. The research dollars have led to the first use of magnetic resonance imaging scanners, or MRIs. They discovered the pathways that some cancer cells take in the body, leading to treatments to potentially stop the spread of cancers to other organs. And as a result of this continuous work, mortality from breast cancer is down. In the last decade, deaths from breast cancer fell by over 20 percent, and more than 2.5 million people in the United States are breast cancer survivors, the largest group of cancer survivors in America.

Now, as we read through the life and the work of Nancy Goodman Brinker, one might think this sounds like an obituary. But, my friends, rest assured Nancy Goodman Brinker's contributions to society are far from over. While many might retire, given this long resume of accomplishments, she continues to take on the mantle and

fight. Since her retirement from public service in our government, she has returned back as the CEO of the Susan G. Komen Centers and also was recently named the first ever World Health Organization's Goodwill Ambassador for Cancer Control.

Finally, I'd like to read a quote by our President, Barack Obama, when he issued the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Ms. Brinker. He said, One of the last things Susie Komen did before she passed away was ask her sister Nancy to make her a promise. Nancy promised her she would prevent other families battling breast cancer from hurting the way theirs had. What began with $200 and a list of friends has become a global race for the cure, a campaign that has eased the pain and saved the lives of millions around the world. In the months after her sister's death, Nancy lay awake at night thinking about the promise she had made and wondering whether one person could really make a difference. Nancy's life is the answer.

Mr. Speaker, that is the reason we rise today to honor Nancy Goodman Brinker for what she has done, for what she continues to do, and for the inspiration that she is to all Americans of what one person can do for their country and for the world.

I reserve the balance of my time.

I yield 2 minutes to my distinguished colleague and good friend, the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen).

I yield 2 minutes to my distinguished colleague and good friend, the gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn).

Mr. Speaker, with that, I urge all Members to support the passage of House Resolution 708, honoring one of the finest Americans, Nancy Goodman Brinker.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Thank you so much. I really appreciate Ms. Wasserman Schultz for her efforts in organizing this Special Order tonight. I especially want to commend her for the courage that she had in being willing to share her story, because she won't have any idea of how much this is going to mean to people. There will be people that will be touched by what you did for years to come because you were willing to speak out and to do this legislation. So thank you for introducing the bill as well.

As was noted, October is the 25th anniversary of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And we have made great strides. Just this week, it was announced that scientists in Canada have, for the first time, decoded all of the 3 billion letters in the DNA sequence of a certain type of tumor. And in the process, they found all the mutations, or the spelling mistakes, that caused the cancer to spread. We know there is a lot to be done in this fight. And I'm also particularly concerned about young women who are diagnosed with aggressive cancers. We've been concerned for some time. That's why we worked with the National Institutes of Health and the environmental people to see if there are links there to figure out why young women in their 20s and 30s are developing breast cancer. It used to be an older person's disease.

So there is a lot of work to be done in that area as we move forward.

But in my city of Charlotte, there was a group of young women in their twenties who were survivors of breast cancer, which they didn't expect. They really just felt so alone, and they formed a group called Breast Friends as a support group. The unfortunate part is this group is growing. It's growing a lot faster than we would like to see it grow. That's one of the challenges we're facing is that so many young women are being diagnosed with this disease. That's the reason I'm pleased to be the lead cosponsor on this bill, the EARLY Act.

Representative Wasserman Schultz has done an excellent job, and it does address some of the needs that younger women who are breast cancer patients and survivors have because it's a unique battle. It's different than has been faced in the past when it comes to diagnosis and treatment and decisions that need to be made. It's a lot different than what those of us who are older, who are survivors have had to face and will have to face in the future.

I have always supported breast cancer research funding over these many years, and there is no doubt that it's an important piece of the puzzle, but education efforts like those in the EARLY Act are also an important piece, because most younger women don't think they can get breast cancer and society tends to tell them, Wait until you are older to get a mammogram. Now there is even talk that self-exams aren't really the way to go. Well, I disagree with that. You are a good example of that one.

We all need to help spread the word. We have got a lot of work to do, not only in our districts, but we need to continue this fight to find a cure. So I thank all of the colleagues that have joined us tonight in this Special Order. It means a lot to everyone, and I also know that they're going to go home to their own districts and do all the advocacy work that we all do over a period of time, and hopefully we will find a cure one day.

With that, I yield back.

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

I wanted to make a couple of points before I do that, and one of them is we can't spend an evening talking about breast cancer without remembering our dear friend JoAnn Davis who was a Member here. And she fought a courageous, courageous battle. She truly did. Unfortunately, she was diagnosed late. She had a very aggressive cancer and she lost that battle a couple of years ago. And it's still hard every time I think of her. She was a tremendous, tremendous person and very valiant.

The other thing I wanted to just mention was when we talk about the awareness that this bill is promoting, women still today don't want to get mammograms simply because they're afraid they will hurt. And you know, I have had so many women say that to me; and then I have other women say, Well, I really don't want to know. And you know, we really need to make women aware that they better find out sooner rather than later. And that's why this legislation is so important.

And men, too. I have two male friends in Charlotte who both have breast cancer and never had any idea--and one of them, unfortunately, because they didn't think he had breast cancer, he isn't with us any longer.

So there is a lot of work to do, and again I commend you for this.

And I have the pleasure of introducing a gentleman who is also new to Congress, and we're delighted he's here, the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cao). I will yield to him 2 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today, during breast cancer awareness month, in solidarity with, and through the strength of, thousands of breast cancer survivors and victims throughout these United States.

I stand by my friend and colleague Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz whose fight with this disease is an incredible story of will and perseverance;

I stand by many longtime friends in our community who have been affected by this terrible disease;

And I stand by hundreds of thousands of women whom I will never know nor meet, but whose stories we already know all too well.

And though breast cancer affects both genders, it disproportionally targets women, with men being about 100 times less likely to be stricken with the disease.

And as women, our chances of developing invasive breast cancer at some time in our lives is incredibly high, by some counts a 1 in 8 chance.

This makes breast cancer the second most common cancer among women.

Almost everyone in this country unfortunately knows someone who has suffered from breast cancer.

Whether that person is your mother, sister, partner, or friend, the story is always heart wrenching.

Through efforts such as breast cancer awareness month, all of us work to bring about greater breast cancer education, prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

But it is stories of some of the brave women with this terrible disease that I want to share today.

Linda Gayle Burrowes never expected to be a statistic.

But for her 49th birthday she received the gift that would save her life.

A friend of hers insisted on giving Linda a mammogram; and the day after Linda's birthday, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

She is a survivor because this angel sent gift caught the disease early, and Linda was determined that other women would not be like her, leaving their life up to chance.

Three months after her mastectomy, she started the breast cancer support and educational group ``Your Bosom Buddies'', which has meetings the 3rd Thursday of each month at the Women's Health Center at Baptist Hospital in my community.

There is also the story of Mary Lamberts, who is a 9-year breast cancer survivor.

Mary has a history of cancers on both sides of her family, so she always prepared for the worst on her check-ups.

But 90% of women diagnosed with breast cancer have no family history of the disease.

The diagnosis came after Mary had a mammogram, followed by an ultrasound that same day after her radiologist saw something suspicious.

During the surgery to follow, her doctor found multiple tumors.

Most of the tumors were removed but she had to undergo over 30 treatments of radiation, and remain on a regimen of powerful drugs for years afterwards.

Thankfully, many men and women do survive this terrible disease.

And no one knows the simple gifts in life like a survivor.

Rosa Andreu Vila was diagnosed with breast cancer 12 years ago and went through a lumpectomy, chemotherapy, and radiation and has mercifully been in remission.

She has told me that in the 12 years since her diagnosis, due to early detection and treatment, she has been able to see both of her sons graduate from college and be married, and is now a proud first- time grandmother.

These are stories of survivors, but new cases of breast cancer happen every day.

Dr. Frank Mave, a local doctor of osteopathy, is one of the newly diagnosed males with breast cancer and just had surgery this month.

He is only just now beginning his ``long and winding road'' with chemo and radiation, and we pray for him and all others who are on their way to being survivors.

These stories show that there is hope, and people are increasingly surviving breast cancer.

In the United States, breast cancer is becoming one of the most survivable cancers, if the disease is detected early.

And this is the point of breast cancer awareness month.

We must remain vigilant in our efforts to educate and diagnose and treat.

With these three pillars, we can and will save lives.

Let us make sure that we educate one another on the dangers of breast cancer and the need for routine checkups.

In memory of Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis, who passed away at the age of 57 while serving last Congress after a two-year battle with breast cancer;

For all men and women in my community and throughout the United States currently battling this terrible disease;

For my daughters, and my new baby granddaughter Morgan Elizabeth, I thank my friend and colleague Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz for her leadership on this issue.

Her story serves as an inspiration to all.

Let us make sure our efforts to defeat this terrible disease continue at full force.