THE WHITE HOUSE

                     Office of the Press Secretary
                   (Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts)
________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release                                     August 7, 2000

PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES DR. HAROLD P. FREEMAN AS CHAIR AND MEMBER OF THE

PRESIDENT'S CANCER PANEL

The President today announced his intent to appoint Dr. Harold P. Freeman to serve as Chair and Member of the President's Cancer Panel.

Dr. Harold P. Freeman, of Scarsdale, New York, has had a distinguished academic career as a surgical oncologist. He has been Professor of Clinical Surgery at Columbia Hospital since 1989 and is currently President and CEO of North General Hospital in New York City. Dr. Freeman is a consultant in surgery at the Breast Service Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He served as National President of the American Cancer Society from 1988 to 1989, and is the chief architect of the Society's Initiative on Cancer in the Poor. He is also a leading authority on the interrelationships between race, poverty, and cancer. In 1997, Dr. Freeman was elected to membership in the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. Currently, he is Chairman of the New York State Commission on Smoking and Health.

Dr. Freeman received a B.A. degree from the Catholic University of America, and a M.D. degree from Howard University Medical School.

The President's Cancer Panel monitors the development and execution of the activities of the National Cancer Program, and reports directly to the President. The Panel consists of three members appointed by the President for terms of three years.

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