Task Force on Cancer Prevention, Early Detection and Treatment in New Jersey presents Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan

RELEASE: January 09, 2003

(TRENTON)--As part of his efforts to make New Jersey a national leader in the fight against cancer, Governor James E. McGreevey today released the state’s first Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan, a blueprint to control cancer in New Jersey over the next five years. 

"This plan provides us with a clear path toward my goal of reducing cancer as a major health threat to the people of New Jersey,” said McGreevey.  "In my first year in office, despite difficult budget times, we invested over $25 million in cancer care, prevention and research.  The health of our families will continue to guide the decisions we make for New Jersey.”

The plan is the product of the Task Force on Cancer Prevention, Early Detection and Treatment in New Jersey, a panel of 16 doctors, nurses, researchers and cancer survivors.  The plan positions New Jersey to apply for additional federal funding because it was developed in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

New Jersey’s Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) is allocating $3.25 million toward implementing the plan’s recommendations.  The plan’s initial step is to conduct a needs assessment that will create a publicly accessible database of all cancer-related efforts in New Jersey.  This resource can be used to identify and eliminate gaps and disparities in cancer care, and to aid patients and their families in finding support and resources in their local community.

"We are dedicated to reducing cancer rates over the next five years," said Dr. Clifton R. Lacy, DHSS commissioner.  “This collaborative effort will reduce duplication and improve the delivery of programs at the state and community level to the benefit of every New Jersey citizen."

The Plan's recommendations also include the following:

• Increase access to cancer care for populations at high risk.  Areas of unmet cancer care needs -- specifically for high-risk or underserved populations – should be identified to ensure that access to services is available;
• Implement comprehensive education and awareness campaigns. It is imperative to inform the public regarding behaviors that can lead to cancer such as tobacco use and improper diet, the importance of early detection in reducing cancer mortality rates, and cancer care available through both public and private resources; and
• Support the ongoing efforts of the New Jersey Comprehensive Tobacco Control Program. Tobacco use is the number one preventable cause of disease, and Governor McGreevey has made it his goal to reduce tobacco use in New Jersey.  The plan recommends continued support for this successful initiative.

Copies of the Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan can be obtained by calling the DHSS at 609-588-5038, or by visiting their website, www.state.nj.us/health/index.html

Dr. Arnold Baskies, chairman of the Task Force and a surgical oncologist at Lourdes Medical Center of Burlington County, and Dr. Eddy Bresnitz, New Jersey's state epidemiologist and assistant health commissioner, presented the plan at a ceremony in the Governor's Outer Office today.

"The Task Force brought together hundreds of New Jersey residents who devoted thousands of hours to bring this comprehensive document to fruition," Dr. Baskies said.  "We deeply appreciate the commitment that Governor McGreevey and his administration have demonstrated to cancer control."

In developing the plan, the Task Force created eight workgroups including experts from medicine and nursing, academia, community health groups, public health representatives, health and human services agencies, and cancer survivors.

"The broad involvement of so many people and organizations focused on cancer reflects our goal to present an evidenced-based, whole-person and population-based plan for service delivery in New Jersey," said Dr. Bresnitz.  "Perhaps most important was the participation and wisdom of cancer survivors who were an integral part of developing this plan."

"The plan's recommendations give us a strategy that will change as the realities of cancer control change," said Dr. Lacy.  "We consider the Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan an evolving document that will be updated as often as needed to keep us at the forefront of the fight against cancer."