The Global Fight Against Cancer

New Tobacco Atlas Underlines World No Tobacco Day Focus on Industry's Undue Influence

The newly released Tobacco Atlas, Fourth Edition graphically details the scale of the tobacco epidemic, progress that has been made in tobacco control, and the latest products and tactics being deployed by the highly profitable tobacco industry. Lead Atlas author Michael Eriksen penned the chapter entitled "Undue Influence." The theme of tomorrow's World No Tobacco Day bears the same name. Dr. Eriksen's research drives home the need to expose and counter the tobacco industry's brazen and increasingly aggressive attempts to undermine global tobacco control efforts.

By Michael Eriksen, ScD

Tobacco companies spend untold millions of dollars annually to influence public policy and legislation. Reporting of tobacco industry political contributions is not required in most countries, so the complete picture of the tobacco industry’sinvestment is not fully understood. In 2010, nineteen companies with tobacco interests spent $16.6 million and employed 168 lobbyists in an effort to directly influence political decisions in the US.

In addition to political influence, tobacco companies make charitable contributions under the guise of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Often these donations and efforts do more to benefit the image of tobacco companies than to benefit humanitarian efforts. In 2010 Philip Morris International contributed a fraction of a percent of the company’s net profits in global charitable donations ($25 million in donations and $7.5 billion in profits). Parties or nations to the WHO FCTC are warned to “be alert to any efforts by the tobacco industry to under-mine or subvert tobacco control efforts” and are obligated to protect their public health policies from commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry.

The influence of the tobacco industry is monumental, and tobacco companies’ contributions to socially responsible causes are of great concern. Not only are CSR contributions a form of tobacco advertising and promotion, but such contributions allow tobacco companies to legitimize themselves with policymakers and the public and counter the negative attention surrounding their deadly products.The tobacco industry exerts undue influence through partnerships with other organizations, such as convenience stores, advertising, and farmers’ associations, and the hospitality industry. Tobacco companies fund front groups and think tanks to promote tobacco or oppose tobacco legislation. While these organizations appear to be independent, governments must be wary of their involvement with Big Tobacco.

The China National Tobacco Corporation has sponsored at least 69 elementary schools,and thousands of students daily are exposed to pro-tobacco propaganda, names and messages.  Schools signs read, "Genius comes from hard work.  Tobacco keeps you sucessful."

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About the Author

Michael Eriksen is a professor in and the founding dean of the Institute of Public Health at Georgia State University. He is also director of Georgia State University’s Partnership for Urban Health Research and Center of Excellence in Health Disparities Research. Prior to his current positions, Eriksen served as a senior advisor to the World Health Organization in Geneva and was the longest-serving director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Office on Smoking and Health (1992–2000). Previously, Eriksen was director of behavioral research at the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. He has recently served as an advisor to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the American Legacy Foundation, and the CDC Foundation.Eriksen has published extensively on tobacco prevention and control and has served as an expert witness of behalf of the US Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission in litigation against the tobacco industry. He is editor-in-chief of Health Education Research and has been designated as a Distinguished Cancer Scholar by the Georgia Cancer Coalition. He is a recipient of the WHO Commemorative Medal on Tobacco or Health and a Presidential Citation for Meritorious Service, awarded by President Bill Clinton. Eriksen is a past president and Distinguished Fellow of the Society for Public Health Education, and has been a member of the American Public Health Association for 
over 35 years.

About the Fourth Edition

The Fourth Edition of The Tobacco Atlas launched on March 21, 2012, at the World Conference on Tobacco OR Health in Singapore, a decade after the publication of the first edition. The Atlas presents the most up-to-date information on tobacco and tobacco control available in a highly graphic, easily understandable format. 

Access to essential pain medicines an important goal in the fight against NCDS

By Meg O’Brien, PhD, Director, Global Access to Pain Relief Initiative

As we head into the World Health Assembly later this month, there will be a good deal of energy focused on translating the commitments to addressing non-communicable diseases made at last year’s UN High-level Meeting into concrete outcomes for people living and dying with these diseases.
There is one group of people anxiously waiting for us to close our Power Point presentations, wrap up our conference calls, and focus our efforts on securing the essential medicines that are out of their reach. They are the 3.3 million people who die each year of cancer or HIV in moderate or severe pain without treatment and the millions of caregivers who must watch them suffer so unnecessarily.
Opioid analgesics, including morphine, are considered essential medicines by the World Health Organization and are recommended for the treatment of moderate to severe pain. Opioids are also on almost all national essential medicines lists, but access to them is severely limited in most low- and middle-income countries, where 85% of the world’s population consumes just 7% of the medicinal opioids.
There is no more striking example of the global disparity in access to health care than cancer. Cancer patients in low- and middle-income countries lack access to basic diagnostic services and cancer awareness is low, so about 80% of cancer cases are in advanced stages of disease when they are diagnosed. Treatment options are severely limited and where treatment is available, it is less effective in such advanced cases. With a prevalence of about 80% among people with advanced cancer, untreated moderate to severe pain that grows worse each day is a consistent feature of cancer care in resource-limited settings.
Improved access to essential pain medicines is not the only thing that cancer patients in low- and middle-income countries need, but it is arguably the easiest and least expensive need to meet, would do the most to relieve suffering, and recent data suggest may also extend survival. With treatment costs in many programs as low as 1.6 USD per week, the cost of providing 12 weeks of treatment to the 4.3 million people who die of cancer in pain in low and middle-income countries each year is just 83 million USD.
The need for pain relief is not limited to people with cancer. Those with HIV, myocardial infarctions, and people recovering from surgery need it, too. So improving access to essential pain medicines offers an opportunity to move beyond disease-specific silos and build initiatives to address non-communicable diseases that are integrated with – and build on – existing communicable disease programs.
As we look for practical, meaningful, and attainable objectives in the fight to improve care for non-communicable diseases, securing access to essential pain medicines is a no-brainer. The policy framework and clinical guidance are in place; the medicines are plentiful, inexpensive, and effective; the need is great; and the impact will be immediate.

The Global Access to Pain Relief Initiative (GAPRI) is a joint programme of the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) to make effective pain control measures universally available to cancer patients in pain by 2020, in line with Target 8 of the World Cancer Declaration.

Marking Mother's Day by Raising Awareness of Cervical Cancer

Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A. — On Mother's Day, May 13, the American Cancer Society Global Health Programs is asking women everywhere to consider a critical issue that affects mothers all over the world.

More than 20,000 people die from cancer each day worldwide, and almost half of them are women. This is especially true in developing countries, where the rising cancer burden among women results in needless pain and suffering and ultimately the devastating loss of young mothers, wives, sisters and daughters.

To address this women's health challenge, the American Cancer Society stands with our global partners in calling for an urgent, comprehensive response that promotes lifesaving information and resources for cancer prevention, early detection, treatment and pain control. 

Developing coutnries bear the brunt of this disease.  Fortunately, there is promising news. Learn more about the global burden of cervical cancer from ACS Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Otis Brawley. http://tinyurl.com/6t2otsg

Cancer Control in Africa: ACS Recognizes International Nurses Day with Frontline Report on Zambia Nurses Treating Tens of Thousands With Cervical Cancer

On Saturday, May 12, International Nurses Day is celebrated around the world to mark the contributions nurses make to society.  In honor of this year's theme “Closing the Gap from Evidence to Action” — ACS invites you to read about cervical cancer screenings and life-saving follow-up services underway in Zambia's capital. 

Lusaka, Zambia — Down a dirt road in Lusaka that snakes through makeshift hawker stalls lies the Zambia Ministry of Health George Clinic. Patients crowd waiting areas, sitting on thin benches sometimes for several hours waiting to be seen by a nurse. What makes this clinic unique is that it is one of only a handful of places in a city of 1.7 million where women are screened for cervical cancer. It is at full capacity every day, as it serves a neighborhood of more than 30,000 women.

The clinic uses the VIA (visual inspection using acetic acid) method to screen for cancer of the cervix. If suspicious lesions are found and can be removed by the nurse by cryotherapy, this is done immediately. Once a patient leaves, clinic staff may never see her again, as most patients do not have a formal address. More than 80 percent of the women agree to be treated on the spot. The nurses’ role as a counselor is crucial, as most patients have never had a simple pelvic exam.

Cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women in sub-Saharan Africa, due to a high prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, which causes cervical cancer, coupled with a lack of screening services and early detection. In Zambia, the impact of the disease is catastrophic, as it accounts for up to half of all female cancer cases. Eight out of 10 patients die from the disease. Health authorities in countries like the US recommend women get their first screening in their 30s. Yet, in Zambia large numbers of women in their early 20s already have signs of the disease, and many suffer from advanced-stage cervical cancer.

Women are the backbone of Zambia; besides being the mothers, family managers, and caretakers, they are breadwinners as well. The death of even one woman is devastating to a community, as they must now take in the children from her family with the few economic resources that they have available, further straining an already fragile situation.

As bleak as the situation seems, progress is being made in the fight against the disease. The Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, in association with the Ministry of Health, began the first program to screen for cancer of the cervix in 2003. From a shoebox of a room in the University Teaching Hospital, the program has grown and has rolled out to a handful of places that includes the George Clinic. The program has successfully screened more than 72,000 women in nearly a decade. Still, in pilot stage the program will expand nationally if funding becomes available.

Expanding cervical cancer screening to all the districts in Zambia is easier said than done. Roads are ruined in the rainy season. Communications and infrastructure are addled year round. Myths about illness abound. Many believe cervical cancer is a "curse" or a "hexe." Many women seek treatment from traditional healers rather than going to a local health post. There is a strong role for awareness, education, and advocacy in this fight.

In the end, this battle will be won by two people — women entering the clinic and the nurses performing the screening. Their 20-minute interaction is what will bring more women into screening clinics. If patients feel that they are in a secure environment where they are respected and valued, they will spread the word in their communities and more women will come to be screened. Our role as NGOs, donors, researchers, and administrators is to make sure that nurses and their patients have the resources and support they need.

 — Jay Evans, Director of Business Planning, ACS Global Health Programs 

Global Cervical Cancer Headline Facts

• Cervical cancer was the fourth leading cause of cancer death in women worldwide, and the leading cause of cancer death among women in sub-Saharan Africa and South Central Asia in 2008. That year, cervical cancer caused an estimated 275,100 deaths.Ninety percent of these deaths occurred in developing parts of the world, where access to screening and treatment are often non-existent and adolescent girls are not receiving vaccination for the human papilloma virus (HPV), the primary risk factor for cervical cancer.
• The HPV vaccine can prevent up to 70 percent of cervical cancer cases, and cost-effective procedures are available to detect and treat cervical pre-cancer.
• To redress the rise in cervical cancer, the Society has spearheaded programs in India, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. We aim to promote public awareness about cervical cancer, educate health professionals, and improve access to screening. We collaborate with PATH and the Cervical Cancer Action Coalition with a shared goal of preventing cancer globally.

Source:  Global Cancer Facts & Figures, 2nd edition

Benin Workshop Highlights Taxation as a Highly Effective Tobacco Control Policy

Written by Tosin Orogun, Africa Tobacco Control Regional Initiative

Porto Novo, Benin — Experts have called on the Benin government to implement an effective taxation policy on tobacco products in the country as a strategic tool for controlling tobacco sales and consumption.

Providing overview of tobacco consequence in the region, Dr. Judith Segnon-Agueh, Tobacco Control Focal point in the Benin Ministry of Health, noted that although tobacco products are very harmful, prices of the products are too low thereby increasing its consumption rate in the country. She said "we must take conscious steps to ensure that we raise price of tobacco products in the country through taxes, so that tobacco products become expensive such that is not easily accessible in Benin. By doing this, we can drastically reduce the demand for the products. The good thing is that we can achieve this by putting in place a strong tobacco taxation policy based on the expert recommendations and global best practices.

"Speaking on tobacco taxation in the ECOWAS region, the Taxation Campaign Coordinator for the Africa Tobacco Control Consortium, Mr. Noureiny TCHA KONDOR, submitted that "the government must take seriously the issue of the loopholes of present tobacco excise tax regulations by supporting a FCTC compliant tobacco tax policy implementation while being involved in anti illicit tobacco trade initiatives at regional level, without any interference of the industry".

Dr. Evan Blecher, Director of International Tobacco Control Research at the American Cancer Society noted that when taxes on tobacco products are too low, it results in low prices of tobacco products and consequently increase consumption of the products, because they become cheaper to buy. He added that smuggled tobacco products are potentially more harmful because the content are not regulated, noting that this scenario not only affect the health of the citizens it also "undermines the tax system of the country".

According to Augustin Faton, President of Initiative for Tobacco Control Education in the Republic of Benin, all West African countries are economic stakeholders for cross-border trade in the region, and ”and putting in place an effective tobacco taxation policy in Benin and corresponding policies across the region will help reduce cases of smuggling of tobacco products and ensure compliance with existing trade protocols among these countries that are sharing borders in the ECOWAS region” he added.

Speaking to journalists after the opening session of the workshop, the Regional Coordinator of the Framework Convention Alliance – Afro (FCA) Mr. Tih A. Ntiabang said, "countries in the ECOWAS region must make deliberate efforts to agree on the modalities for implementing effective laws that will raise taxes on tobacco products and discourage tobacco industries' strategy of smuggling products from one country to another." While encouraging countries of the region to continuously increase taxes on tobacco products, he pointed out that one of the key recommendations of the WHO MPOWER to arrest tobacco use, is to raise taxes.

Mr. Tosin Orogun, the Media Advocacy and Communications Coordinator for Africa Tobacco Control Consortium, emphasized on the fact all stakeholders must recognize that effective control of illicit trade and tobacco tax evasion control begins with implementing the provisions of the WHO FrameworkConvention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) by enacting the effective domestic tobacco control laws. According to him, "countries within the region that have demonstrated commitment to implementing the FCTC must be supported and encouraged to get to the finish-line".

Benin is working towards entrenching tobacco control regulations into their national laws.

The workshop was organized by Initiative for Tobacco Control Education as part of the activities supported by the Africa Tobacco Control Consortium. Among participants at the meeting are representatives of different government ministries concerned with health and taxation issues in Benin, the media and Civil Society Organizations working in Tobacco Control.

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Tobacco Control Advances the Goals of the World Congress of Cardiology

Dubai, United Arab Emirates — The World Congress of Cardiology ended in Dubai this weekend with a continued emphasis on new science in cardiology (e.g multinational trial results on the effectiveness of stents in stroke prevention), as well as the role the field of cardiology will need to play in ensuring that the goals of the UN High-Level meeting on Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) held last September in New York are met.

In that regard, the ACS's Director of Cancer Science and Trends, Dr. Thomas Glynn, was invited by the Congress organizers to present two papers proposing how cardiologists can use the WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control to take on more active roles in preventing heart disease on a global level. By doing so, he argued, cardiologists can make a significant difference in NCD prevalence, since ischemic heart disease and stroke, along with cancer, represent the world's three leading causes of death.

This theme was reinforced through the conference in sessions focused on preventive cardiology (e.g. one major session focused on presentations describing recent data on how creating more smoke-free environments and changing the built environment to encourage more exercise can make cities healthier places to live and reduce the NCD burden that many global cities now bear), and by the World Heart Federation's immediate past-president, Dr. Pekka Puska/Finland, current president, Dr. Sidney Smith/USA, and incoming president and ACS Luther Terry Awardee, Dr. Srinath Reddy/India, each of whom has been exceptionally supportive of preventive cardiology throughout their careers, especially with regard to tobacco control.

The Congress concluded with the announcement the 2014 World Congress of cardiology has been awarded to Melbourne, Australia, an especially fitting venue, given Australia's leading role in global tobacco control, as evidenced by the Luther Terry Award given by the ACS last month in Singapore to Australia's Ministry of Health and Ageing."

 

Tobacco's Harm to Cardiovascular Health Highlighted at Dubai Conference Drawing Delegates from more than 100 Countries

Dubai, United Arab Emirates — The World Congress on Cardiology (WCC) is meeting this week in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Organized by the World Heart Federation/Geneva, the bi-annual WCC is the world's largest gathering of cardiologists and allied healthcare professionals, representing more than 100 countries, and featuring more than 600 speakers and 800 symposia. The goal of the WCC is provide cardiologists and their colleagues with the most up-to-date science in the prevention and treatment of heart disease.The American Cancer Society (ACS) has been an active participant in the planning and conduct of the WCC, ranging from supporting pre-conference workshops on the treatment of tobacco dependence and making the business case for smokefree workplaces (through the Society's Global Bridges and Global Smokefree Worksite Challenge affiliations, respectively), to presenting invited papers, through agreeing to serve as a conduit for the Congress's results and resolutions.

The WCC was officially opened on April 18 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Prime Minister of Dubai.

An exceptionally beautiful opening ceremony followed, featuring cultural exhibitions unique to the Emirates, including children's dances and sand art.

The inaugural events also featured several addresses from UAE health and civic officials, and Dr. Sidney Smith, president of the World Heart Federation.

In addition to highlighting advances in cardiology, three themes of the Congress have been especially relevant to the ACS and its global mission:

— First, there has been a focus on the challenge that the sharp increase in noncommunicable diseases pose to global health. Since cancer and heart disease are the #1 and #2 causes of death globally, there is a natural collaboration between cardiologists and oncologists and that has been made very clear at the Congress;

— Second, there has been recognition throughout the Congress of the role that tobacco plays in NCD development and the need to both prevent and treat tobacco use; and

— Third, there has also been considerable attention paid to women's health, an issue of importance to the ACS, especially in its activities in Africa.

Today at the Congress, for example, delegates have been asked to wear some article of clothing with red in it, to symbolize their solidarity with the women's health movement.

A clear message for the ACS coming from the Congress thus far is that we need to continue, and ield  The Congress continues through Sunday, April 22 and additional highlights will follow.

American Cancer Society Organizes Patient Navigator Training in Brazil

São Paulo, Brazil — The American Cancer Society held a Patient Navigator training in São Paulo, Brazil from April 11-12. The training included 25 participants from cancer NGOs from throughout Brazil.  Among the participants were navigators and staff from the American Cancer Society-supported Patient Navigator Programs of the Instituto Oncoguia and IMAMA, as well as representatives from 15 other leading cancer patient services NGOs from every region of the country. 

 The training was led by Angelina Esparza, Director, American Cancer Society Health Equity; Rian Rodriguez, Director, ACS Patient Navigator Program; Patricia Valverde, Director, Colorado Patient Navigator Training Program: Adriana Bacci, Manager, ACS Brazil Breast Cancer Action Program; and Gustavo Azenha, Lead Manager, American Cancer Society’s Global Health Department.

The American Cancer Society Latin American Patient Navigator Program aims to address cancer disparities by attending to the information and resource needs of cancer patients and caregivers from low-income communities.  The Program is one element in the Society’s broader efforts in the region to promote more equitable access to and quality of care.

Participants learned about development and implementation of both, outreach navigator and hospital-based navigator programs.  In addition, participants received instruction on working effectively with patients, including identifying and addressing health barriers; health communications; health behavior change; patient education/empowerment; patient empowerment; and community outreach.

Participants were given solid foundation for developing impactful Patient Navigator programs with clear goals and strategies, which will prove indispensable to strengthening existing patient services initiatives in Brazil, helping to make them more patient-centered, evidence-based, and impactful.

 

 

Advancing World Health Day: “Increased exposure to cancer risk factors is a ticking time bomb”

By Nathan Grey, MPH, National vice president of global health for the American Cancer Society

Cancer is among the most preventable and the most curable of the major chronic life-threatening diseases. Unfortunately, it remains a leading killer worldwide. In 2008, there were an estimated 12.7 million new cases of cancer and 7.6 million cancer deaths (GLOBOCAN 2008, IARC). Cancer accounts for 1 in 8 deaths throughout the world. That's more than HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. While this loss of life alone is staggering, the impact on those affected, their caregivers, and society-at-large is also profound. 

Several factors account for the growing global burden ofcancer including aging populations, tobacco use, poor diet and lack of exercise, and exposure to infectious agents associated with cancer. Poverty, gender inequities, and misconceptions about cancer's causes and treatments often exacerbate the situation. In addition, there are large disparities in the capacity of health care systems, governmental programs, and nongovernmental organizations to serve their populations. Many low and middle-income countries have few, if any, early detection and prevention efforts, and treatment options are often limited.

The growth and aging of populations is particularly important because it represents both a remarkable public health triumph and the single greatest driver behind the increases in total cancer cases. During the past 50 years, growing wealth and economic opportunity, better nutrition and housing, safer food and water, improved hygiene and sanitation, changes in reproductive practices, and increased use of antibiotics and vaccines have led to better control of communicable diseases, reductions in childhood mortality, increases in life expectancy, and ultimately growing and aging populations. Simultaneously, tobacco's long tentacles have spread their influence around the world, thanks to globalization and urbanization facilitating the broad and aggressive marketing of tobacco products. This globalization has led to the growth of tobacco use (with 1.25 billion smokers worldwide), tobacco-caused morbidity and mortality, and increased adoption of a "western" lifestyle. People worldwide are eating more high calorie foods and reducing their physical activity, which are contributing to increases in overweight and obesity and the diseases associated with them. There are a staggering 1.6 billion people who are overweight worldwide and 400 million who are obese. The end result of these major trends is an increase in people with chronic (decades-long) exposure to cancer risk factors, and as a result, an increase in the number of cancer cases.

Growing and aging populations represent a public health triumph, while increased exposure to cancer risk factors, on the other hand, is a ticking time bomb. Without intervention, we will no doubt see an explosion of new cancer cases and cancer deaths throughout the world. The American Cancer Society and our partners worldwide are working to control major cancer risk factors and to prevent this unnecessary tragedy. We have made a major commitment to tobacco control through advocacy training, seed grants, economic and epidemiologic research, and information tools such as the Tobacco Atlas. We support programs to prevent chronic exposure to cancer and to detect and treat breast and cervical cancers; and we support efforts to educate people about the dangers of obesity and sedentary lifestyles through publications such as Global Cancer Facts and Figures and the Cancer Atlas. In these and other ways, the American Cancer Society is committed to reducing the burden of cancer among all age groups, including the growing number of older people throughout the world, because we believe it’s not only about how long you live, but also about how well you live.

What is World Health Day? 

Every year, World Health Day is celebrated on 7 April to mark the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization in 1948. Each year a new theme highlights a priority area of concern for WHO. The topic of World Health Day in 2012 is aging and health with the theme "Good health adds life to years". The focus is how good health throughout life can help older men and women lead full and productive lives and be a resource for their families and communities. Aging concerns each and every one of us – whether young or old, male or female, rich or poor – no matter where we live.

New Tobacco Atlas Shows Promise of Progress for a Global Problem

Friday April 06, 2012

I learned a fact recently that has really stuck with me. During the year 2010, the tobacco industry made an estimated $6,000 in profit for every person killed by tobacco use around the world. Six thousand per death.

With almost 6 million people dying annually from smoking-related diseases, you can see how the tobacco industry has been able to earn incredible profits from addicting people to their products using manipulating, misleading practices. In fact, in 2010, the six leading tobacco companies in the world made a collective profit of $35.1 billion, the equivalent of the profits of Coca Cola, McDonalds and Microsoft combined.

These facts and more from the latest Tobacco Atlas, a graphic representation by the American Cancer Society and the World Lung Foundation of the global tobacco epidemic, the progress being made and the latest products and misleading practices deployed by Big Tobacco,  were released at the World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Singapore last month.

The progress now being made around the world to combat the tobacco epidemic is largely linked to public policy and legislation related to tobacco control. According to the Tobacco Atlas, the number of people globally who were protected by comprehensive smoke-free laws doubled between 2008 and 2010. With many studies showing smoking bans do not affect employment or business, smoke-free laws are an effective, proven way to help people quit smoking.

As we’ve learned in the U.S., the most effective way to tackle tobacco use is through a multi-pronged approach of enacting comprehensive smoke-free laws, regularly and significantly increasing tobacco taxes and providing sustained investments in cessation and prevention programs. Significantly curbing the marketing practices of the industry to entice new and young smokers is another key strategy. Since 2002, the Society and ACS CAN have helped 35 states, four U.S. territories and the District of Columbia enact laws requiring that 100 percent of workplaces and/or restaurants and/or bars be smoke-free, protecting nearly 80 percent of the U.S. population from secondhand smoke. We’ve also led the way in working with state legislatures to pass more than 100 cigarette tax increases in 47 states.

In the U.S., we are also fortunate to have a law, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, that will rein in Big Tobacco through regulation by the FDA of the industry’s production and marketing practices. ACS CAN is working to strongly implement this law to help people quit smoking and ensure our kids never start.

With attention to this kind of policy globally, the next edition of the Tobacco Atlas should show more progress against tobacco use and less profit for Big Tobacco.

Dr. John Seffrin, CEO of ACS CAN, presenting the Tobacco Atlas at the World Conference on Tobacco or Health

 

 

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Citing the Tobacco Atlas, Kenya News Reports on Need for Tobacco Control in Africa

The Star (Nairobi)

By John Muchangi, April 2012

Nairobi, Kenya — At least three per cent of all deaths of men in Kenya every year is triggered by tobacco use, a new global report shows. The 2012 Tobacco Atlas says this is the most preventable cause of death in the country, and anywhere else in the world. It shows that Kenyans smoke about 15 billion sticks of cigarette every year, which exposes them to heart diseases and certain forms of cancer.

The annual Atlas is the world's most comprehensive analysis of tobacco related activities and is produced by the American Cancer Society and the World Lung Foundation. "Worldwide, smoking causes almost 80 per cent of male and nearly 50 per cent of female lung cancer deaths," says the report endorsed by the World Health Organisation.

The statistics on Kenya are compiled from the Demographic and Health Surveys among other indicators. The Ministry of Public Health is now calling for increased controls on consumption of cigarettes to stop these deaths. "Tobacco tax should be increased to reach the recommended WHO level of 70 per cent of retail price," said head of the non-communicable diseases department Dr William Maina.

WHO recommends higher cigarette prices to make them unaffordable to children and make the habit expensive for regular smokers. According to the Atlas, 22.5 per cent of Kenyan men currently use cigarettes while only one per cent of women are smokers. The report also shows 11.2 per cent of boys aged between 13 to 15 years and 5.2 per cent of girls of the same age also puff.

Health experts say if this trend continues the country will soon be dealing with a tobacco epidemic. "If this is something that can be prevented, this is the time to do that," said Dr Newton Mugendi, a physician based in Nairobi. The Atlas graphically details the scale of tobacco use, progress that has been made in tobacco control, and the latest products and tactics being deployed by the highly profitable cigarette manufacturing industry.

Kenya, like most African countries, however compares favourably with developed countries in Europe and America where at least 20 per cent of all male deaths have been blamed on cigarette smoking. In China, tobacco use is the number one killer, causing 1.2 million deaths annually and this is expected to rise to 3.5 million deaths annually by the year 2030.

Experts however warned of any celebrations saying tobacco industry was already growing in developing countries, who have little capacity to treat conditions like cancer and heart diseases. "We can no longer deny or accept the massive human and economic harm costs by tobacco," said John R. Seffrin, head of the American Cancer Society.

According to the Atlas, in 2011, tobacco use killed almost six million people globally, with nearly 80 per cent of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. It says that the industry realises almost $6,000 (Sh498,000) in profit for each death caused by tobacco. "The tobacco industry thrives on ignorance of the true harms of tobacco and using misinformation to subvert health policies that could save millions," said Peter Baldini, chief executive officer, World Lung Foundation. In Kenya, cancer is a growing menace killing about 22,000 people annually, according to the Kenya Cancer Association.

However, data on the exact deaths directly related to tobacco use use is hard to come by as there is currently no National Cancer Registry, according to the International Institute for Legislative Affairs, who have conducted research on tobacco use in Kenya. "Therefore we have always said that tobacco consumption causes up to 5 million deaths yearly globally with 7-10 per cent of these deaths occurring in developing countries," says Emma Wanyonyi, who heads the public education and capacity building programme at ILA.

Information from the ministry of health however indicate that 50- 70 per cent of all hospital admissions and over 50 per cent of total mortality in the country are caused by non-communicable diseases, such as cancers, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and respiratory diseases. "Majority of these cases are related/ linked to tobacco use," says Emma.

The Atlas warns if the current rate of smoking in the world continues, one billion people will die from tobacco use and exposure during the 21st century - one person every six seconds. Globally, tobacco-related deaths have nearly tripled in the past decade, and tobacco is responsible for more than 15 per cent of all male deaths and seven per cent of female deaths, according to Atlas and the WHO.

Tobacco is also a risk factor for the four leading noncommunicable diseases - cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and chronic respiratory diseases - which account for more than 63 per cent of global deaths according to the WHO. "Uniquely among cancer-causing agents, however, tobacco is a man-made problem that is completely preventable through proven public policies," says the report.

It says effective measures include tobacco taxes, advertising bans, smoke-free public places, mass media campaigns and effective health warnings. Kenya instituted some of these measures in 2007 after the Tobacco Control Act was ratified. "These cost-effective policies are among those included in the WHOs Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, a global treaty endorsed by more than 174 countries," the report says.

Bloomberg News: Tobacco Use Killed 6 Million in 2011, America Cancer Society Says

Tobacco Use Killed 6 Million in 2011, Cancer Society Says
By Bloomberg News - Mar 21, 2011 

Tobacco use killed almost 6 million people last year and was the top cause of death in China, the world’s biggest cigarette market, the American Cancer Society and World Lung Foundation reported.
Four of every five deaths were in low- and middle-income countries, and 1 billion people may die from tobacco use and exposure this century if current trends continue, according to the report, released in Singapore today.

Tobacco-related deaths almost tripled in the past decade amid a 17 percent jump in cigarette production and increased affordability of the cancer-causing products in low-income nations. The tobacco industry generates about $500 billion in annual sales, with the six biggest companies making a combined profit of $35.1 billion in 2010, said Judith Mackay, who co- wrote the report.

“The tobacco industry is among the top-10 most influential industries in the world because of its sheer magnitude of wealth and sales,” Mackay, a physician and adviser to the World Lung Foundation and the World Health Organization, said in a telephone interview on March 20.

Governments have been trying to implement the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, a global treaty endorsed by more than 174 countries and recommended by the Geneva-based United Nations agency, to curb smoking.

Plain Packaging Challenge

Producers have been increasing efforts to combat those measures with legal challenges in every region of the world, according to the World Lung Foundation.

These include objections to smoke-free legislation, and opposition to advertising bans and graphic warnings of disease on cigarette packs.

“The wolf is no longer in sheep’s clothing, and its teeth are bared,” Margaret Chan, director general of the Geneva-based WHO, said in a speech in Singapore yesterday. “Paying people to use a country’s judicial system to challenge the legality of measures that protect the public is a flagrant abuse of the judicial system and a flagrant affront to national sovereignty. This is direct interference with a country’s internal affairs.”

Australia, the first nation to require plain packaging on tobacco products, was the subject this month of a complaint by Ukraine to the World Trade Organization over its plan. Philip Morris International Inc. (PM), Imperial Tobacco Group Plc (IMT) and Japan Tobacco Inc. (2914) are among companies that have challenged the law, which Australia is extending to include cigars and loose-leaf tobacco products.

Chinese Consumption

“‘Big Tobacco’ first tried to bully the global community out of advancing this treaty,” said John Stewart, senior organizer of Corporate Accountability International’s campaign Challenging Big Tobacco. “Now it’s attempting to bully countries out of enforcing it.”

Bloomberg Philanthropies is a major donor to the World Lung Foundation. Bloomberg Philanthropies was set up by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, founder and majority owner of Bloomberg News parent Bloomberg LP.

China is the world’s biggest producer and consumer of tobacco, accounting for 38 percent of cigarettes smoked worldwide in 2009, the groups said today.

Excise should be almost tripled in China to dissuade young people from becoming addicted, the World Health Organization said on March 14.

The price of cigarettes in China is already “quite high” and the ability of higher prices to discourage smoking isn’t proven, Minister of Industry and Information Technology Miao Wei said in Beijing on March 11.

To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Daryl Loo in Beijing at dloo7@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jason Gale at j.gale@bloomberg.net

Reuters Cites Tobacco Atlas: Smoking Deaths Triple over Decade

By Kate Kelland LONDON | Wed Mar 21, 2012 7:36am EDT (Reuters) - Tobacco-related deaths have nearly tripled in the past decade and big tobacco firms are undermining public efforts that could save millions, a report led by the health campaign group the World Lung Foundation (WLF) said on Wednesday. In the report, marking the tenth anniversary of its first Tobacco Atlas, the WLF and the American Cancer Society said if current trends continue, a billion people will die from tobacco use and exposure this century - one person every six seconds. Tobacco has killed 50 million people in the last 10 years, and tobacco is responsible for more than 15 percent of all male deaths and 7 percent of female deaths, the new Tobacco Atlas report found. (www.tobaccoatlas.org) In China, tobacco is already the number one killer - causing 1.2 million deaths a year - and that number is expected to rise to 3.5 million a year by 2030, the report said. That is part of a broader shift, with smoking rates in the developed world declining but numbers growing in poorer regions, said Michael Eriksen, one of the report's authors and director of the Institute of Public Health at Georgia State University. "If we don't act, the projections for the future are even more morbid. And the burden of death caused by tobacco is increasingly one of the developing world, particularly Asia, the Middle East and Africa," he said in an interview. Almost 80 percent of people who die from tobacco-related illnesses now come from low- and middle-income countries. In Turkey, 38 percent of male deaths are from smoking-related illnesses, though smoking also remains the biggest killer of American women too. WLF's chief executive Peter Baldini accused the tobacco industry of thriving on ignorance about the true effect of smoking and "misinformation to subvert health policies that could save millions". The report said the industry had stepped up its fight against anti-tobacco policies, launching legal challenges and seeking to delay or stop the introduction of plain packaging, legislation banning smoking in public places, advertising bans and health warnings on packets. The world's six biggest tobacco firms made $35.1 billion in profits in 2010 - equal to the combined earnings of Coca-Cola, Microsoft and McDonald's, the report said. Smoking causes lung cancer as well as several other chronic pulmonary diseases and is a major risk factor in heart disease, the world's number one killer. More than 170 countries have signed up to a World Health Organization-led convention committing them to cut smoking rates, limiting exposure to second-hand smoke, and curbing tobacco advertising and promotion. WHO director general Margaret Chan said thanks in part to that convention, 1.1 billion people have in the past two years become covered by at least one measure designed to curb tobacco use. She added, however, that the battle was far from over and urged more countries to fight the industry. "We must never allow the tobacco industry to get the upper hand," she said in a foreword to the report. "Tobacco is a killer. It should not be advertised, subsidized or glamorized." (Reporting by Kate Kelland; Editing by Ben Harding)

Reuters Reports Smoking is a Drag on World Economy: Tobacco Atlas is Source

By Mark Tay SINGAPORE | Wed Mar 21, 2012 8:51am EDT (Reuters) - Smoking costs the world 1 to 2 percent of its gross domestic product each year and could kill about 1 billion people this century, authors of the fourth edition of the Tobacco Atlas said at the book's launch in Singapore. The economic losses include direct and indirect costs such as healthcare spending for treating smoking-related illnesses and the value of lost productivity, say the authors of the book, which is published by the American Cancer Society. The cost of smoking could be even greater, as co-author Hana Ross said it was difficult to measure intangible costs like the suffering of family members or pain felt by patients. "During the 20th century, tobacco killed 100 million people. The estimate is that in the 21st century, tobacco will kill 1 billion people," lead author Michael Eriksen said at the launch of the book at a global health conference in Singapore. The world's population has grown by more than four times in the last century, passing the 7 billion mark last year. Eriksen said there are about 1 billion tobacco users around the world and 600,000 non-smokers die each year because of exposure to second-hand smoke - 75 percent of them women and children. China is by far the world's largest consumer of cigarettes, with 38 percent of them in 2009, and saw costs due to smoking more than quadruple to $28.9 billion between 2000 and 2008, the authors said in the book. "China has quite a problem because the tobacco industry is part of the government," co-author Judith Mackay said, noting that Beijing's move to raise tobacco taxes two years ago did not change the purchase price of cigarettes but merely manipulated the way taxes were paid to the government. "China is in a process of change. It needs a little bit of the stick but quite a lot of encouragement to really take the process forward," Mackay said. The world's most populous nation is one of the 174 countries to have signed and ratified the World Health Organisation's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Some countries, including the United States and Argentina, have signed but not ratified, while Indonesia, Uzbekistan and Zimbabwe have done neither. Eriksen described such treaties as "toothless". "Any treaty is written by the member states who are the ones who are going to have to ratify it, so it is not in their interest to have penalties," he said. "If you ratify and don't do anything, there is no financial penalty, which is wrong because there should be teeth. It is a life and death situation." (Editing by Robert Birsel)

Bangladesh News Reports on the Important Role of Finance Ministers in Tobacco Control: Article Cites Tobacco Atlas

"Raising tobacco taxes saves lives by encouraging smokers to quit,

reduce the number of cigarettes smoked and prevent potential users from ever starting"

                       — John R Seffrin, PhD, chief executive officer of American Cancer Society

Nurul Islam Hasib
Senior Correspondent from Singapore

Singapore —  As tobacco control pits health ministers against finance ministers in many countries where the former is 'unlikely' to win, public health experts at a global conference suggest innovative approaches to unite them to fight against the tobacco industries.

Social movement through strong civil society coalition has been seen instrumental in this regard, they observed on Wednesday, the second day of the 15th World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Singapore.

"It's (tobacco control) a political talk especially when it pits the health minister against the finance minister," said professor K Srinath Reddy, president of Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI).

He said economic arguments were important but again it was part of a political battle.

"But you cannot expect health minister's victory over finance minister. Finance minister is politically stronger and senior in the cabinet. Health minister too needs the goodwill of the finance minister for other health programmes.

"So what we can expect is concord between them to move the finance minister to a neutral position from active opposition," Prof Reddy, the leading public health expert in India, said in a paper presented on Wednesday.

Dr Monika Arora, head of tobacco control of the public-private initiative PHFI, presented the paper on his behalf. Prof Reddy could not come because of his last moment engagement in a state programme.

Earlier, representatives from a number of countries including India, Kenya, Mexico, Russia and Indonesia said tobacco control activities do not progress in their countries due to interference by tobacco companies through the finance ministry.

A bdnews24.com investigation also found the finance ministry had shot down a move (Tougher tobacco law plan botched) by the health ministry to draft a tobacco stricter control act in Bangladesh.

Prof Reddy in his paper said even in India, the finance ministry was presently not favouring strong tobacco control measures, although health ministry wanted it.

"But still then we can win over the finance minister if the economic argument, development, disease burden, vulnerability and right to life argument of non-smokers and children are made.

"And if we counter tobacco industry's misleading arguments convincingly. Tobacco control will not lead to unemployment, need not hurt farmers, will not result in revenue loss, will not discourage foreign investment. [We need to] mobilise civil society to vigorously campaign against tobacco industry's fear and smear tactics."

He said while the finance minister was the main decision maker on taxation, others will exert influence on the overall tobacco control policy.

"We have to remember that donations to political parties also influence government attitudes. Policies are not made in pure isolation in closed cabinet rooms.

"Economists are also divided. So to whom finance minister will listen to?" He added the civil society coalition needed to be expanded taking all relevant stakeholders on board.

Prof Reddy said in short terms raised taxes will raise revenues. "As consumption goes down, non or ex-smokers will spend their disposable incomes on other goods which are also taxable.

"Total economic tally of tobacco related health, environmental and social costs will amount to an economic and developmental cost that exceeds any loss of tobacco revenues," he argued

Bangladesh data shows that tobacco-related healthcare costs alone exceed tobacco revenues.

Even then, he said, if the finance minister listened to the industry, 'get the non-tobacco segments of the industry to understand why tobacco control was important for them too'.

"Tobacco related disease leads to productivity losses among their employees and workforce in general; tobacco related expenditure drains disposable incomes which can be used for buying other products which they make.

"Show that tobacco industry is a law breaker. It evades excise tax and encourages illicit trade.

"And finally give the argument that tobacco control is the integral part of sustainable development."

John R Seffrin, chief executive officer of American Cancer Society, appreciated the idea and said tobacco taxation was the 'best buy' for the economy and for saving lives.

He said tax can be a major threat of tobacco companies' existence in a country.

"Because of increased tobacco taxes, cancer survival rate has increased in US, decreasing mortality rate."

"Raising tobacco taxes saves lives by encouraging smokers to quit, reduce the number of cigarettes smoked and prevent potential users from ever starting," he said.

According to American Cancer Society, 10 percent increase in cigarette prices reduces demand by 2 to 6 percent in high-income countries and by 2 to 8 percent in low and middle-income countries.

Youth, minorities, and low-income smokers are two to three times more likely than other smokers to quit or go smokeless in response to price increases, it said.

bdnews24.com/nih/bd/1643h                            

American Cancer Society and World Lung Foundation Release New Tobacco Atlas

Singapore — Smoking costs 1 to 2 percent of the world's gross domestic product each year. The habit could kill about 1 billion people this century, according to authors of the 4th edition of the Tobacco Atlas.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) and World Lung Foundation (WLF) debuted the 4th edition of the Atlas at the World Conference on Tobacco OR Health in Singapore. CEOs Dr. John Seffrin and Peter Baldini from ACS and WLF, respectively, introduced Atlas findings.

Authors Dr. Michael Eriksen, Dr. Judith Mackay, and Dr. Hana Ross recounted progress made in the past decade since publication of the first Tobacco Atlas in 2002. They also discussed challenges posed by the tactics of the multi-billion dollar tobacco industry.  Additionally, ACS researcher Michal Stoklosa showed a new interactive map on tobaccoatlas.org that allows users hone in on maps to find the tobacco manufacturing plants across the globe.

Compelling graphics of data from key sections of the Atlas illustrate costs to society, solutions through marketing and treaties, as well as warnings about the growing smokeless tobacco market. 

The Tobacco Atlas plenary session drew more than 1000 delegates.  For more information about the launch visit pressroom.cancer.org/ Follow conference updates on Twitter #WCTOH12.

 

Big Tobacco's Newest Most Vulnerable Victims – Young Women

By Cynthia M. LeBlanc, Ed.D, Chair, American Cancer Society

Singapore: Today, the American Cancer Society released the 4th edition of the global Tobacco Atlas, a joint publication with the World Lung Foundation, at the World Conference on Tobacco OR Health in Singapore. Among other findings, the book notes that the top 6 tobacco manufacturers earned more than $35 billion in profit in 2010. That same year, there were almost 6 million deaths from tobacco. To put this in context, these tobacco companies earn almost $6,000 in profit per death caused by tobacco.

They use this wealth and power to market to young people, particularly young women, in many low- and middle-income countries. Despite a World Health Organization (WHO) global public health treaty that includes measures such as banning tobacco ads and sponsorships, which would curb use among young people, many ads still actually feature candy and youth-oriented lingo. In countries where women are making real strides to achieve gender equality, tobacco marketers use their enormous profits to pepper billboards with ads that associate smoking with women's empowerment. They also find ways to skirt laws that prohibit marketing near schools, arcades, and other venues frequented by youth.

Dr. Margaret Chan, the director-general of WHO, is among many health advocates in Singapore calling out "Big Tobacco" for what they are doing and demanding more public outrage to influence laws against tobacco. In her keynote speech, Dr. Chan invoked a popular former US cigarette ad from the 1960s, putting her own twist on it. As Dr. Chan said, “We’ve come a long way, bullies. We will not be fazed by your harassment."

Harassment and bullying usually affects the most vulnerable populations. Indeed, the Atlas shows an alarming trend – the gap between teenage girls and teenage boys who smoke is closing. If these patterns continue, the consequences for women, families, and economies will be devastating. Women and children are also the victims of the deadly toxins in secondhand smoke. In countries with a high male and low female smoking prevalence, the secondhand smoke exposure causes illness and death. In fact, women and children account for 75% of the 600,000 deaths caused by secondhand smoke. Women who smoke also increase their risk for fertility problems and low birth-weight babies.

Tobacco control is essential to reduce noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in women. These diseases – which include cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and respiratory diseases – account for more than 63% of global deaths.
 
There is an active and impressive growing global movement within the United Nations, multilateral agencies, and NGOs to improve health, quality of life, and human rights for women. Aggressive measures to combat the growing tobacco epidemic and the multi-million-dollar campaigns by the tobacco industry to addict young women should become a priority for all of those seeking to protect the health and safety of women.

Join the American Cancer Society in Marking International Women's Day on March 8th

Washington, D.C. — More than 10,000 women lose their lives to cancer each day worldwide. Yet, this disease still does not receive adequate attention and resources.  Please join us to honor International Women’s Day on Thursday March 8 and help call for global attention to cancer:

Share a story: From Brazil to Britain, Uganda to Uruguay — read the stories of women cancer survivors, caregivers, and advocates.  Their courage inspires!  Share these compelling stories on Facebook or Twitter. Be sure to use the #IWD hashtag and mention your support in the fight against women's cancers.

Join our Twitter chat: On March 8, International Women’s Day, we are hosting a panel discussion in the U.S. capital, educating influencers on the need to make women’s cancers a priority. From 2 pm to 2:30 pm ET, we will host a live Twitter Q&A with the moderator of the panel discussion, American Cancer Society's deputy chief medical officer Dr. Len Lichtenfeld. Dr. Len will share insights from the panel discussion and answer your questions. Please join us by tweeting your questions to @ACSGlobal.

 

Request for Applications - Building Academic Curricula for Tobacco Control Research and Leadership Development

Atlanta, USA — The American Cancer Society is currently inviting Colleges and Universities, Schools of Medicine or Nursing, and other institutions of higher learning to submit an Application to develop academic training programs on tobacco control within their institutions. The overall goal of the Request for Applications is to establish a rigorous, formal course of study, preferably at the graduate level, which will prepare students in low and middle-income countries for tobacco control work in civil society, government, research institutions, or the private sector upon graduation. In so doing, this Request for Applications aims to move tobacco control training and research to a higher priority in educational settings of higher learning, by supporting the development of formal educational programs (degree, certificate, certification, continuing medical education credit, etc.) in public health or other academic disciplines that are relevant to tobacco control.

Applications will be accepted from institutions in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean.

More information and the application form can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/87trs6p

 

Cancer Trends a Global Issue

By Maryanne Kocis MacLeod
maryanne.macleod@macombdaily.com; @maryannemacleod

for The Macomb Daily Newspaper(www.macombdaily.com/contact/)

Mount Clemens, Missouri — Around the globe, chronic disease caused 63 percent of all deaths in 2008, claiming the lives of 36 million people. These illnesses, however, don't just kill people — they destroy local economies.

Cancer alone cost $895.2 billion worldwide, more than any other cause of death, according to an American Cancer Society/Livestrong Report. That's three times as much as tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV/AIDS combined.

A historic meeting of the United Nations last fall brought to light the health crisis — along with the urgent need for a coordinated response. Other non-communicable diseases contributing to the disease epidemic include: diabetes, heart disease and chronic respiratory illness. The only other previous such meeting of the UN tackled HIV/AIDS.

In commemoration of World Cancer Day, Feb. 4, the American Cancer Society is encouraging Americans to learn what they can do personally to address the global crisis by calling 800-227-2345 or visiting global.cancer.org.

In the Million Mom Challenge (www.millionmomchallenge), 50 women from around the country met in Washington to increase awareness and receive training on how they can address maternal health concerns world-wide.

"What we're trying to do is reduce cancer rates in developing countries, particularly those related to reproductive health," explained Ann McMikel, managing director of global health for the American Cancer Society. "Through screening and Pap smears, we have made great strides in decreasing cervical cancer deaths in the United States. But that is not the case in Africa and South America."

By joining the "conversation," McMikel said, the organization is optimistic women and moms will discover ways to connect with their counterparts in other countries, find camraderie and share support, particularly through social media.

The specific how's have not yet been fully defined, McMikel said, but the key message is this: "Get Involved!"

"This meeting has given us the potential to set the global health community on a path toward real change, measured in saved lives and diminished suffering," said John R. Seffrin, CEO of the American Cancer Society. "Our work is really just beginning."

Here are some highlights from the American Cancer Society's annual U.S. report, Cancer Statistics 2012:

 

Between 2004-2008, overall cancer incidence declined 0.6 percent per year in men and remained stable in women, while cancer death rates decreased by 1.8 percent per year in men and by 1.6 percent per year in women.

Cancer death rates declined in men and women of every racial/ethnic group with the exception of American Indians/Alaska Natives, among whom rates have remained stable. The reduction in overall cancer death rates since 1990 in men and 1991 in women translates to avoiding more than a million total deaths during that time period.

A total of 1,638,910 new cancer cases and 577,190 deaths from cancer are projected to occur in the United States in 2012.

The most rapid decline in death rates occurred among African American and Hispanic men (2.4 percent and 2.3 percent per year, respectively).

Death rates continue to decline for all four major cancer sites (lung, colorectum, breast, and prostate), with lung cancer accounting for almost 40 percent of the total decline in men and breast cancer accounting for 34 percent of the total decline in women.

Cancer incidence and death rates vary considerably among racial and ethnic groups. For all cancer sites combined, African American men have a 15 percent higher incidence rate and a 33 percent higher death rate than white men, whereas African American women have a 6 percent lower incidence rate but a 16 percent higher death rate than white women.

Compared with whites, African American men and women have poorer survival rates once cancer is diagnosed. The 5-year relative survival is lower in African Americans than in whites for every stage of diagnosis for nearly every type of cancer.

Despite declines in incidence rates for the most common cancers, the incidence of several cancers has increased in the past decade, including cancers of the pancreas, liver, thyroid and kidney, and melanoma of the skin, as well as esophageal adenocarcinoma and certain sub sites of oropharyngeal cancer associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.

The reasons for these increasing trends are not entirely known. Part of the increase (for esophageal adenocarcinoma and cancers of the pancreas, liver, and kidney) may be linked to the increasing prevalence of obesity as well as increases in early detection practices for some cancers.

Cancer Statistics 2012 can be viewed at cacancerjournal.com; Cancer Facts & Figures 2012 is available at cancer.org/statistics.

 

 

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