Rep. Greg Murphy
U.S. Rep. Greg Murphy (R-NC) recently sponsored bipartisan legislation that would direct the U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs to permanently establish a precision oncology program for cancer of the prostate (POPCaP).
The POPCaP Authorization Act, H.R. 8553, which is cosponsored by U.S. Rep. Herb Conaway (D-NJ), would address prostate cancer, the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare system.
“As a urologist and representative of over 76,000 veterans, I understand how important the POPCaP Program is to treat individuals with prostate cancer,” Rep. Murphy said. “Due to the exposures our veterans faced during their time serving our nation, they are far more likely to develop prostate cancer than civilian men.”
In 2016, the VA Office of Research & Development launched the VA Precision Oncology Program to conduct state-of-the-art precision oncology research to improve care for veterans and others with cancer.
As part of the initiative, the VA partnered with the Prostate Cancer Foundation to establish the POPCaP, which the VA currently plans to integrate into a newly created Precision Oncology Program.
Rep. Murphy thinks this could dilute the quality of care that veterans with prostate cancer receive and make it more difficult for veterans to receive state-of-the-art treatments.
“Given the special attention this disease demands, rolling the POPCaP Program into greater oncology care is insufficient,” said Rep. Murphy. “We have made great strides in research and treatment for veterans and cannot afford to slow our progress. This program is vital and must not be dismantled or diminished.”
H.R. 8553 has garnered support from ZERO Prostate Cancer and is under consideration by the U.S. House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
“Prostate cancer remains a serious and disproportionate threat to our veteran population, particularly for African American veterans, who continue to face significantly higher rates of both diagnosis and mortality,” Rep. Conaway said. “This legislation represents an important step toward addressing those disparities by strengthening research and improving the delivery of care within the VA system. We have both the tools and the responsibility to do better.”