ease, and when prostate cancer appears in early 
middle age it frequently takes on a more aggressive 
form. 
(5) There are significant racial and ethnic dis-
parities that demand attention, namely African- 
Americans have prostate cancer mortality rates that 
are more than double those in the White population. 
(6) Underserved rural populations have higher 
rates of mortality compared to their urban counter-
parts, and innovative and cost-efficient methods to 
improve rural access to high quality care should take 
advantage of advances in telehealth to diagnose and 
treat prostate cancer when appropriate. 
(7) Certain veterans populations may have 
nearly twice the incidence of prostate cancer as the 
general population of the United States. 
(8) Urologists may constitute the specialists 
who diagnose and treat the vast majority of prostate 
cancer patients. 
(9) Although much basic and translational re-
search has been completed and much is currently 
known, there are still many unanswered questions. 
For example, it is not fully understood how much of 
known disparities are attributable to disease eti-
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ology, access to care, or education and awareness in 
the community. 
(10) Causes of prostate cancer are not known. 
There is not good information regarding how to dif-
ferentiate accurately, early on, between aggressive 
and indolent forms of the disease. As a result, there 
is significant overtreatment in prostate cancer. 
There are no treatments that can durably arrest 
growth or cure prostate cancer once it has metasta-
sized. 
(11) A significant proportion (roughly 23 to 54 
percent) of cases may be clinically indolent and 
‘‘overdiagnosed’’, resulting in significant overtreat-
ment. More accurate tests will allow men and their 
families to face less physical, psychological, financial, 
and emotional trauma and billions of dollars could 
be saved in private and public health care systems 
in an area that has been identified by the Medicare 
program as one of eight high volume, high cost areas 
in the Resource Utilization Report program author-
ized by Congress under the Medicare Improvements 
for Patients and Providers Act of 2008. 
(12) Prostate cancer research and health care 
programs across Federal agencies should be coordi-
nated to improve accountability and actively encour-
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age the translation of research into practice, to iden-
tify and implement best practices, in order to foster 
an integrated and consistent focus on effective pre-
vention, diagnosis, and treatment of this disease. 
SEC. 3. PROSTATE CANCER COORDINATION AND EDU-
CATION. 
(a) INTERAGENCY PROSTATE CANCER COORDINA-
TION AND EDUCATION TASK FORCE.—Not later than 180 
days after the date of the enactment of this section, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in cooperation with the Sec-
retary of Defense and the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services, shall establish an Interagency Prostate Cancer 
Coordination and Education Task Force (in this section 
referred to as the ‘‘Prostate Cancer Task Force’’). 
(b) DUTIES.—The Prostate Cancer Task Force 
shall— 
(1) develop a summary of advances in prostate 
cancer research supported or conducted by Federal 
agencies relevant to the diagnosis, prevention, and 
treatment of prostate cancer, including psychosocial 
impairments related to prostate cancer treatment, 
and compile a list of best practices that warrant 
broader adoption in health care programs; 
(2) consider establishing, and advocating for, a 
guidance to enable physicians to allow screening of 
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men who are over age 74, on a case-by-case basis, 
taking into account quality of life and family history 
of prostate cancer; 
(3) share and coordinate information on Fed-
eral research and health care program activities, in-
cluding activities related to— 
(A) determining how to improve research 
and health care programs, including psycho-
social impairments related to prostate cancer 
treatment; 
(B) identifying any gaps in the overall re-
search inventory and in health care programs; 
(C) identifying opportunities to promote 
translation of research into practice; and 
(D) maximizing the effects of Federal ef-
forts by identifying opportunities for collabora-
tion and leveraging of resources in research and 
health care programs that serve those suscep-
tible to or diagnosed with prostate cancer; 
(4) develop a comprehensive interagency strat-
egy and advise relevant Federal agencies in the solic-
itation of proposals for collaborative, multidisci-
plinary research and health care programs, including 
proposals to evaluate factors that may be related to 
the etiology of prostate cancer, that would— 
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(A) result in innovative approaches to 
study emerging scientific opportunities or elimi-
nate knowledge gaps in research to improve the 
prostate cancer research portfolio of the Fed-
eral Government; 
(B) outline key research questions, meth-
odologies, and knowledge gaps; and 
(C) ensure consistent action, as outlined by 
section 402(b) of the Public Health Service Act; 
(5) develop a coordinated message related to 
screening and treatment for prostate cancer to be 
reflected in educational and beneficiary materials for 
Federal health programs as such documents are up-
dated; and 
(6) not later than two years after the date of 
the establishment of the Prostate Cancer Task 
Force, submit to the Expert Advisory Panel to be re-
viewed and returned within 30 days, and then within 
90 days submitted to Congress recommendations— 
(A) regarding any appropriate changes to 
research and health care programs, including 
recommendations to improve the research port-
folio of the Department of Veterans Affairs, 
Department of Defense, National Institutes of 
Health, and other Federal agencies to ensure 
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that scientifically based strategic planning is 
implemented in support of research and health 
care program priorities; 
(B) designed to ensure that the research 
and health care programs and activities of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs, the Depart-
ment of Defense, the Department of Health and 
Human Services, and other Federal agencies 
are free of unnecessary duplication; 
(C) regarding public participation in deci-
sions relating to prostate cancer research and 
health care programs to increase the involve-
ment of patient advocates, community organiza-
tions, and medical associations representing a 
broad geographical area; 
(D) on how to best disseminate informa-
tion on prostate cancer research and progress 
achieved by health care programs; 
(E) about how to expand partnerships be-
tween public entities, including Federal agen-
cies, and private entities to encourage collabo-
rative, cross-cutting research and health care 
delivery; 
(F) assessing any cost savings and effi-
ciencies realized through the efforts identified 
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and supported in this Act and recommending 
expansion of those efforts that have proved 
most promising while also ensuring against any 
conflicts in directives from other congressional 
or statutory mandates or enabling statutes; 
(G) identifying key priority action items 
from among the recommendations; and 
(H) with respect to the level of funding 
needed by each agency to implement the rec-
ommendations contained in the report. 
(c) MEMBERS
OF
THE PROSTATE CANCER TASK 
FORCE.—The Prostate Cancer Task Force described in 
subsection (a) shall be composed of representatives from 
such Federal agencies, as each Secretary determines nec-
essary, to coordinate a uniform message relating to pros-
tate cancer screening and treatment where appropriate, 
including representatives of the following: 
(1) The Department of Veterans Affairs, in-
cluding representatives of each relevant program 
areas of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 
(2) The Prostate Cancer Research Program of 
the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Pro-
gram of the Department of Defense. 
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(3) The Department of Health and Human 
Services, including at a minimum representatives of 
the following: 
(A) The National Institutes of Health. 
(B) National research institutes and cen-
ters, including the National Cancer Institute, 
the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious 
Diseases, and the Office of Minority Health. 
(C) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 
Services. 
(D) The Food and Drug Administration. 
(E) The Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention. 
(F) The Agency for Healthcare Research 
and Quality. 
(G) The Health Resources and Services 
Administration. 
(d) APPOINTING EXPERT ADVISORY PANELS.—The 
Prostate Cancer Task Force shall appoint expert advisory 
panels, as determined appropriate, to provide input and 
concurrence from individuals and organizations from the 
medical, prostate cancer patient and advocate, research, 
and delivery communities with expertise in prostate cancer 
diagnosis, treatment, and research, including practicing 
urologists, primary care providers, and others and individ-
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uals with expertise in education and outreach to under-
served populations affected by prostate cancer. 
(e) MEETINGS.—The Prostate Cancer Task Force 
shall convene not less than twice a year, or more fre-
quently as the Secretary determines to be appropriate. 
(f) SUBMITTAL
OF RECOMMENDATIONS
TO CON-
GRESS.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit 
to Congress any recommendations submitted to the Sec-
retary under subsection (b)(5). 
(g) FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 
U.S.C. App.) shall apply to the Prostate Cancer 
Task Force. 
(2) EXCEPTION.—Section 14(a)(2)(B) of such 
Act (relating to the termination of advisory commit-
tees) shall not apply to the Prostate Cancer Task 
Force. 
(h) SUNSET DATE.—The Prostate Cancer Task 
Force shall terminate at the end of fiscal year 2016. 
SEC. 4. PROSTATE CANCER RESEARCH. 
(a) RESEARCH COORDINATION.—The Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs, in coordination with the Secretaries of 
Defense and of Health and Human Services, shall estab-
lish and carry out a program to coordinate and intensify 
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prostate cancer research as needed. Specifically, such re-
search program shall— 
(1) develop advances in diagnostic and prog-
nostic methods and tests, including biomarkers and 
an improved prostate cancer screening blood test, in-
cluding improvements or alternatives to the prostate 
specific antigen test and additional tests to distin-
guish indolent from aggressive disease; 
(2) better understand the etiology of the disease 
(including an analysis of lifestyle factors proven to 
be involved in higher rates of prostate cancer, such 
as obesity and diet, and in different ethnic, racial, 
and socioeconomic groups, such as the African- 
American, Latin-American, and American Indian 
populations and men with a family history of pros-
tate cancer) to improve prevention efforts; 
(3) expand basic research into prostate cancer, 
including studies of fundamental molecular and cel-
lular mechanisms; 
(4) identify and provide clinical testing of novel 
agents for the prevention and treatment of prostate 
cancer; 
(5) establish clinical registries for prostate can-
cer; 
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