Message to the Congress Transmitting Annual Report on the National Cancer Program.

To the Congress of the United States:

I am pleased to submit to you the annual report on the National Cancer Program's activities, progress and accomplishments during calendar year 1973, as well as the plan for the program for the next five years. Both the report and the plan are required by section 410A(b) of the Public Health Service Act as amended by The National Cancer Act of 1971.

The plan is provided in two documents. The first, called "National Cancer Program Operational Plan," covers the five-year plan for the program and delineates the major policies and procedures used to operate the program. The second document, called "Appendices to the National Cancer Program Operational Plans" includes separate brief descriptions of the individual research, control and support programs of the National Cancer Institute. The funding levels contained in the plan do not constitute a specific commitment or recommendation by the Administration. Among other things, those levels do not adequately take into account overall budgetary constraints and the competing demands of other biomedical research programs.

The Administration is also deeply committed to an effective cancer research program. The progress and accomplishments made in 1973 are gratifying. The National Cancer Program is beginning to have an impact on Americans who have cancer or are at risk to it. Today, more Americans than ever before have access to the most advanced methods of cancer diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation. This human endeavor and its successes are the result of the National Cancer Institute's expanding research programs, and its efforts to apply for the benefit of the people, as quickly as possible, the knowledge emerging from the clinical bedside and research laboratory.

Our national research program to conquer cancer will take years before achieving ultimate success. The recent enactment of the National Cancer Act Amendments of 1974, which continue the National Cancer Program, demonstrates the abiding commitment of the Congress and the executive branch to solve this major health problem.

Success in this endeavor will ultimately come, however, only with the sustained dedication and hard work of the physicians, scientists, health professionals, voluntary agencies, and the volunteers who support this program.

GERALD R. FORD

The White House,

November 4, 1974.