Gov. Minner, General Assembly Establish Council To Investigate Cancer Mortality In Delaware
Dover – Governor Ruth Ann Minner and the members of the 141st General Assembly announced Saturday they will create the Advisory Council on Cancer Incidence and Mortality.
Gov. Minner, Senate President Pro Tempore Thomas Sharp, D-Pinecrest, and Speaker of the House of Representatives Terry Spence, R-Stratford, will ask the council to provide initial recommendations on reducing cancer mortality rates in May and to provide a final report by the end of the year.
The 13-member council will include the Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services; the director of the Division of Public Health; the Secretary of Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control; the state Insurance Commissioner; a representative of the Medical Society of Delaware; professors from the University of Delaware and Delaware State University; three members of the public; a member from the state House of Representatives and the state Senate; and a representative of the Governor’s Office.
“We know that Delaware has a high cancer mortality rate, and I want to know why that is and what can be done about it,” Gov. Minner said.
“We should all be alarmed at the number of cancer mortality cases we see in Delaware,” Sen. Sharp said. “I believe by gathering the best talents and information available, we can find a cause for this disease. We should allocate whatever resources are needed to help with this effort.”
“Our state’s high cancer mortality rate is of concern to every Delawarean,” Rep. Spence said. “This council holds the promise of discovering the underlying causes for this serious threat and finding solutions that will safeguard the health of our citizens.”
The council will be chaired by Bill Bowser, whose son Michael, has completed three-and-a-half years of chemotherapy for leukemia at the age of 13.
Bowser, an attorney with Young, Conaway, Stargatt & Taylor in Wilmington, is founder and past president of the Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Delaware, an organization that advocates on behalf of and in support of children with cancer and their families. He and his wife Maureen Bowser, a member of the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society of Delaware board, were recipients of the Governor’s Volunteerism Award in 2000 for their work on behalf of children with cancer. The Bowsers also have a daughter, Kelly, 9.
“We are going to find out the facts and develop an action plan,” Bowser said. “I am proud of Gov. Minner and the General Assembly for taking on this issue and thankful for allowing me to be a part of it.”
