Congressman Bruce F. Vento, age 59, Minnesota

Im Bruce Vento. For the past 30 years I have had the honor of representing the citizens of Minnesota. As a State Legislator and Member of Congress, I dedicated myself to changing the status quo, whether it's helping the homeless, creating more parks, curbing drug abuse, or expanding the rights of consumers. Often, at night I reflect on my days actions and ask myself: have I made a difference in someone's life? Have I created opportunities for others? Have I helped build hope?

My focus changed dramatically this year. I was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in late January. As most of you likely know, mesothelioma is the tumor that is associated with asbestos exposure.

I underwent aggressive surgery about two weeks later at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. My thoracic surgeon, Dr. Dan Miller, removed my left lung and a lot more. Today Im concluding the clinical chemotherapy treatment at Mayo.

I am fortunate to live in Minnesota where we have world renowned surgeons and cancer specialists. When I was diagnosed, my doctors did not despair, nor did they burden me with just statistics. They set out to treat me. I have since learned that not every patient is so fortunate.

Some patients may be advised that such a tumor is incurable. They are told that the best they can expect is to live another 8 to 18 months. They are told that surgery or chemotherapy won't really help.

Faced with such advice, most patients will be demoralized. They might give up. If they choose to fight on their own they must search for help, sorting through radical sounding treatments, and explanations of care that are painful, expensive, and of questionable consequence. Patients that are lucky enough and can afford it may land in LA or New York with a specialist. They may find that their HMO questions covering such "experimental" treatment.

America is a great country with vast resources and intellectual firepower. But it still takes time to learn about a disease and find a cure. Most of us are not trained oncologists, this is help and service that we should have reasonably available when we need it. Billions of dollars have been spent on litigation since mesothelioma was first reported in the early 1950s -- millions on experts who are paid to prove and deny causation alone. But a pittance has been spent on finding a cure. Drug companies won't invest money to find a cure because "only" 3-4000 Americans are diagnosed annually. Asbestos companies have done nothing, even though it would certainly be in their interest to help detect and identify a treatment cure. The Government hasnt stepped up perhaps because we want to believe that in a short period of time, the disease will simply fade away. So, it seems the cure is avoidance of the asbestos; period.

Despite the lack of research, and the dearth of funding, there are a handful of extremely dedicated doctors who believe that this cancer tumor has an Achilles heel--that it can be attacked at the molecular level and we need to address it. One of the first doctors I consulted when I learned of my diagnosis was Dr. Harvey Pass, now the Chairman of the Science Advisory Board of the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, or "MARF." MARF is a non-profit foundation whose mission is to eradicate mesothelioma as a terminal disease.

Amidst so much despair, MARF offers hope by assembling some of the best and brightest medical talent. These experts are united. They are in the trenches fighting this cancer tumor every day, staying abreast of world wide research. They know what therapies hold promise. They also know the research money is limited and will give priority to laboratory and clinical research that offers real hope to patients.

I have a degree in biology and taught high school science classes for ten years. I have always been deeply interested in medical science. I am impressed -- from an academic and personal point of view -- with the ideas that MARF is exploring to expand the therapies available for