Hon. Andrew Cardozo: Honourable senators, I want to thank members of the Canadian Cancer Society from across Canada for joining us today, as I want to thank all of you who joined us for the group picture to mark cancer awareness day in the Senate.

Cancer is the leading cause of death in Canada. Shockingly, over 40% of Canadians will get cancer at some point in their lives, and 26% will die. Please permit me to put this in personal terms. There are about 100 of us in the Senate. If we look around the room, 40 of us will be diagnosed with cancer during our lifetimes — some of us have already been there — and 26 of us will die prematurely from cancer. That’s the statistic.

There is hardly a family in Canada that has not been marked by this pernicious disease. It is projected that in this year, 2026, there will be 254,000 new cancer cases and 88,000 deaths from cancer. Lung, breast, prostate and colorectal cancers are the most common, together making up nearly half of the cases. There are over 200 different types of cancers affecting organs, blood, bone marrow and the immune system.

Colleagues, this is the second time we are marking cancer awareness day in the Senate as part of the annual Daffodil Month. Every spring, the Canadian Cancer Society rallies together around the daffodil so Canadians can show support and help people with cancer live longer, fuller lives. The daffodil is the first flower to bloom in the spring, and for those living with cancer it is a symbol of hope.

There are many issues that need attention by federal and provincial governments, such as improving access to health care, better data collection, boosting palliative care, encouraging prevention, raising investment in cancer research and funding for drugs for rare cancers and clinical trials.

As the Senate co-chair of the parliamentary cancer caucus, I want to thank my House of Commons counterparts, members of Parliament Peter Schiefke and Dan Albas, for their service. I encourage you to join the caucus so we can work further on this pressing need.

You will be receiving the group pictures we took a few minutes ago wearing our daffodils, or please take your own pictures. But most importantly, please post them to increase awareness of this urgent need and demonstrate our support for this.

I want to salute those living with cancer, and I want to sincerely thank our guests from the Canadian Cancer Society and all those working to fight cancer across the country. Together we can and will make a difference.

Thank you.