Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation Recognizes National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.

ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Colorectal Cancer continues to be the second leading cancer killer for both men and women combined in the United States, even though it is 90 percent preventable and treatable when detected early.

The Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation, along with the other 54 National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month (NCRCAM) partners, takes March as an opportunity to change these statistics by helping to educate the public about the disease.

"Much progress has been made over the past few years in both prevention and treatment of colorectal cancer," says Carolyn Aldige, president and founder of the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation. "Our challenge is to educate Americans about the importance of regular screening, and if they are diagnosed with colorectal cancer, it is equally important that they know about their treatment choices."

National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month was founded by the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation, the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the Foundation for Digestive Health and Nutrition, and the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, in order to bring critical messages about colorectal cancer to the American people. The Foundation obtained resolutions from the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, as well as proclamations from two White House Administrations declaring March as National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month (NCRCAM).

Fifty-one additional collaborating partners have since joined the founders to educate about colorectal cancer year-round, focusing their energies and resources on the annual awareness campaign that takes place each March.

The 2005 National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month campaign once again features the Buddy Bracelet, a wristband that encourages people to "Wear it, Share it, Because You Care." With this theme, the bracelet reminds those who wear it to get screened for colorectal cancer. After the person is screened, he/she gives the bracelet to a family member, friend or colleague to convey the powerful message to talk with a health care professional about colorectal cancer. The bracelet is then passed along from that person to another person and so on, creating a chain reaction that could save thousands of lives.

The bracelet is branded with the phrase "Colorectal Cancer: Preventable, Treatable, Beatable" to emphasize that the disease can be prevented through screening, and that it is treatable and beatable, when detected and treated in its earliest stages.

For more information about National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, go to http://www.ncrcam.org/.

About Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation:

The Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation was started in 1985 when Founder and President Carolyn Aldige first understood the power of prevention to defeat cancer -- and recognized that too few of the country's resources were used to promote cancer prevention research or education. Today, it is one of the nation's leading health organizations and has catapulted cancer prevention to prominence. Since its inception the Foundation has provided more than $66 million in support of cancer prevention and early detection research and education programs. CRPF peer-reviewed grants have been awarded to more than 250 scientists from more than 150 of the leading academic medical centers nationwide. This research has been pivotal in developing a body of knowledge that is the basis for important cancer prevention and early detection strategies.

About the Buddy Bracelet:

Launched in February 2004 to celebrate National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month (NCRCAM), which takes place every March to educate Americans about colorectal cancer, the Buddy Bracelet creates awareness about the disease. The Buddy Bracelet campaign was a winner almost overnight -- 50,000 bracelets were distributed nationwide between February 1 and March 31, 2004. For its 2005 NCRCAM campaign, the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation plans to distribute more than 200,000 bracelets.

Buddy Bracelets are available for $1 each via the Foundation's toll-free number, 1-877-35-COLON, or by visiting http://www.preventcancer.org/.

CONTACT: Anne Banner of the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation, [phone], [e-mail]

CONTACT: Anne Banner of the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation, [phone], [e-mail]

Web site: http://www.preventcancer.org/ http://www.ncrcam.org/