For the first time in the history of Canada’s Federal Parliament, a member of the House of Commons has taken the floor to speak about the need for awareness of neuroendocrine cancer. On Tuesday, November 2nd, the Honorable, Dr. Carolyn Bennett, PC, MP, made a Members’ Statement about the first Worldwide NET Cancer Awareness Day during the part of the day’s proceedings allotted to Members’ Statements by individual Members of Parliament.
The Honorable Carolyn Bennett
During her statement, Dr. Bennett said, “Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to rise today to support Worldwide NET Cancer Awareness Day on November 10. I rise here today with the hope that these words will spark awareness of this often under-reported, underserved and unknown cancer group. Across our country, there are limited treatment options for Canadians suffering from NET tumours. Health Canada has yet to approve yttrium and lutetium. It is my hope that by making more people aware of this cancer there will be steps taken to invest more resources into helping diagnose, treat and care for NET cancer patients in Canada and around the world.”
Dr. Bennett was first elected to the House of Commons in the 1997 and was re-elected in 2000 and 2004, representing the electoral district of St. Paul’s. In December 2003 in the wake of the SARS outbreak, Prime Minister Paul Martin appointed Dr. Bennett as the first ever Minister of State (Public Health). Among her achievements during her two years as Minister, she created the Public Health Agency of Canada, appointed the first Chief Public Health Officer for Canada and established the Public Health Network, which enabled all provinces and territories to work with the Federal Government on protecting the health of Canadians.
The World NET Community thanks The Honorable Carolyn Bennett for her support and bringing about greater awareness of neuroendocrine cancer.
