Mr. Speaker, I stand before you today to say that as a woman I am at risk because of an unknown and to date an unstoppable killer. I am referring to the killer known as breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in women in Canada. It is estimated that by the end of this year 5,300 women will die from this disease and 90,300 new cases will arise. These figures are frightening and they hit close to home.
This past summer I was reawakened to this terrifying disease when I witnessed my own cousin become one of those estimated fatalities of breast cancer. Through research we know that the risk of breast cancer is slightly higher with a family history of cancer incidence and with increasing age, but while research has been ongoing over the past two decades the mortality rates for breast cancer have not changed.
The renewed commitment to breast cancer initiatives by the federal government was announced in June. The first five year contribution amounting to $45 million will go toward reducing both the incidence of breast cancer in Canada and the mortality rate and to improve the quality of life of those directly and indirectly affected by this disease.
As the minister stated, the government's renewed—