The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a)
Breast cancer is a devastating health condition which will affect one out of nine American women during their lifetimes. Every three minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer and every 12 minutes a woman dies of breast cancer. In 1992, 182,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast
cancer and 46,300 will die from the disease. In 1992, nearly 19,000 California women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 7,000 will die from the disease. Periodic mammography screening has reduced breast cancer mortality by almost 50 percent. Nearly 15 percent of early tumors are not detected on mammograms. Thirty percent of all tumors found on mammograms are missed due to poorly performed or misinterpreted tests. The direct and indirect costs concerning a breast cancer diagnosis exact a huge economic toll of eight billion dollars ($8,000,000,000) a year, with the impact on the health system, the loss of worktime, the loss of women employees and lives lost to a disease that bankrupts families emotionally and economically.
(b)
There is no known cause, cure, or prevention at this time for breast cancer. Women are encouraged to screen themselves and be screened for breast cancer. According to some studies early detection through mammography
reduces the rate of death from breast cancer by 30 to 50 percent. The state of breast cancer screening must be continually improved to identify breast tumors. Current techniques for breast cancer screening include mammography, both film screen and xerography, and ultrasound.
(c)
It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this article, to establish a systematic program to conduct research regarding the cause, cure, and prevention of breast cancer. The outcome of this research may have direct effects and consequences on the development of a comprehensive system which may identify the cause, cure, and prevention of breast cancer as well as improving the screening, diagnoses and treatment of victims of breast cancer. This program shall award grants to eligible physicians, hospitals, laboratories, educational institutions, and other organizations and persons for the purpose of enabling organizations and persons to conduct
research.