On March 26, U.S. Senators Edward M. Kennedy and Kay Bailey Hutchison introduced the 21st Century Cancer Access to Life-Saving Early detection, Research and Treatment (ALERT) Act, a comprehensive bill to address the broad issues that the nation faces in combating cancer. Since the National Cancer Act of 1971, this has been the first sweeping cancer legislation to be introduced.

The legislation specifically notes that myeloma and seven other lethal cancers have a five-year survival rate of less than 50 percent. In order to reduce this rate, the bill …