Thanks to improving medical care and collective lifestyle improvements, including a sustained decline in the number of Coloradans who smoke, we have reduced the lives lost to cancer during the past few decades. But progress is plateauing, and out-of-control cancers occupy a prominent burden on both individuals and Colorado communities.

Each year, just shy of 30,000 of us learn we are now cancer patients and, even with significant strides in cancer treatments, must live under the cloud of knowing we have a life-threatening condition.

That’s why it’s worth paying close attention to what U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet is doing in Washington, D.C.

At a time in which partisan divides seems worse than ever in our nation’s capital, Sen. Bennet is at the forefront of an important effort uniting Republicans and Democrats. He is a primary sponsor of a bill to greatly decrease the burden of cancer by making it possible for more patients to have the disease diagnosed at an earlier, more treatable stage.

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We’re on the verge of profound changes in our cancer-screening capabilities. A new multi-cancer early detection test can enable a patient to be screened for dozens of types of cancer from a simple blood draw. This is an enormous leap from what has been our status quo. We have had excellent cancer screening tools, but they can only test for one variation of the disease at a time. And we have only been able to screen for five types of cancer.

With these blood tests, physicians can screen for ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, esophageal cancer and other types for which we haven’t had early detection capabilities. And the earlier the diagnosis, the better the survival rates and lower cost to treat.

What Sen. Bennet and his colleagues are trying to do is make sure this valuable cancer detection tool is accessible for the people who need it the most. Seniors age 65 and older have the highest cancer incidence rates. Yet, without congressional action, Medicare isn’t able to meaningfully cover these innovative blood tests. Given how slowly the wheels grind in the federal bureaucracy, it would take untold years before Medicare beneficiaries could have access to these game-changing cancer diagnostics.

Sen. Bennet’s legislation, the Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act, cuts through the red tape and allows Medicare to cover these tests as soon as they are approved by the Food and Drug Administration. It would bring broad accessibility to a screening tool that is not only effective but also easy to administer and could be brought to our state’s rural areas that face cancer screening challenges.

Again, even in these politically fractious times, this bill has tremendous bipartisan traction, having enjoyed the support of nearly 400 lawmakers in the Senate and House.

This push to enact the next major step in the war against cancer warrants our attention. With so many achievements taking place in our ability to treat and manage cancer, we need to see the same progress unlocking these abilities by diagnosing it earlier. Congress should pass Sen. Bennet’s legislation without delay.

Erika Hanson Brown is chief executive and founder of One Cancer Place — a patient-powered platform committed to improving the lives of those navigating cancer.