WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in California, with 14,255 new cases and 5,265 deaths expected in 2014; and

WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is treatable, curable, and in many cases, completely preventable; and

WHEREAS, When colorectal cancers are detected at an early stage, survival is 95 percent; and

WHEREAS, There were approximately one million colorectal cancer survivors in the United States in 2002; and

WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer is known as a silent killer because symptoms only show up in the later stages of the disease; and

WHEREAS, With proper screening, colorectal cancer can be prevented or, if found early, treated and cured; and

WHEREAS, In 2010, only 51 percent of California adults 50 years and older had received colorectal cancer screening according to the guidelines; and

WHEREAS, According to the United States Preventative Services Task Force, access to appropriate use of colorectal cancer screening tests, such as colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, and fecal occult blood test (FOBT)/fecal immunochemical test (FIT), could reduce death rates of colon cancer up to 66 percent; and

WHEREAS, According to the American Cancer Society, in 2011, only about 45 percent of colorectal cancers were diagnosed at an early, more treatable and curable stage; and

WHEREAS, The uninsured, underinsured, and underserved are least likely to get screening for colorectal cancer, which means they are more likely to be diagnosed at a late stage when chances of survival drop to 13 percent; and

WHEREAS, Colorectal cancer screening is one of the most cost-effective prevention measures in health care, more cost-effective than breast or prostate cancer screening; and

WHEREAS, African Americans have the highest colorectal cancer incidence and mortality rates of all racial groups in this country; and

WHEREAS, In California, colorectal cancer is the second most common cancer among Korean, Hispanic, Japanese, South Asian, Kampuchean, and Hmong men, and the second most common cancer among Chinese, Filipino, Hispanic, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Vietnamese, and Kampuchean women; and

WHEREAS, The California Colorectal Cancer Coalition (C4) is a nonprofit organization established to increase colorectal cancer screening rates in an effort to decrease mortality associated with the disease, and implement strategies to reduce disparities in colorectal cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment among underserved populations in California; and

WHEREAS, The California Colorectal Cancer Coalition (C4) encourages Californians to discuss the colorectal cancer screening test that is best for them with their doctors and believes that the best test is the one you have done; now, therefore, be it