The Global Fight Against Cancer

Launch of Patient Navigation Program in Mexico

INCan staff and NGO leaders try out the new INFOCANCER Web site

On February 4, the American Cancer Society and the Mexican National Cancer Institute (INCan) launched a new patient navigation program called INFOCANCER. This three-tiered patient support program is similar to the support the American Cancer Society provides to patients in the United States. The launch event was covered by several Mexican media outlets. Based at INCan headquarters, the program’s goal is to give patients personal support in handling needs – such as proper housing, economic assistance, and adequate transportation – that are beyond the scope of their attending oncologist. Interested patients can find information on the program in Spanish through a Web site (www.infocancer.org.mx) and toll-free phone number or through walk-in assistance at INCan headquarters. The American Cancer Society provides technical support for the program. It also provides financial support along with the Mexican Secretaria de Salud and Roche Pharmaceuticals.

Saudi Cancer Society Chairman Visits American Cancer Society National Home Office

Dr. Abdullah S. Al-Amro, chairman of the Saudi Cancer Society and CEO of King Fahad Medical City in Riyadh, visited Dr. John Seffrin at the National Home Office on February 19 to discuss international cancer control priorities and areas of potential collaboration. Dr. Al-Amro expressed interest in American Cancer Society comprehensive cancer control planning; cancer surveillance; tobacco control; palliative care; and resource appropriate screening, early detection, and treatment of breast and other cancers. Dr. Al-Amro generously offered to support Saudi participation in an American Cancer Society / University of Florida international breast health symposium scheduled in Cairo during October 2009. Dr. Al-Amro also offered to collaborate on Arabic translations of Society guidelines and cancer information materials, such as the Cancer Atlas, Tobacco Atlas, and Global Cancer Facts and Figures 2007. Drs. Seffrin and Al-Amro were united in their belief that global cancer control requires effective international cooperation and confirmed their common commitment to the mission of eliminating cancer.

American Cancer Society launches oral cancer screening trial in India

Drs. Surendra Shastri and Gauravi Mishra examine a patient while Drs. Susan Muller and Mary Jo Lechowicz observe.

The Center for Global Cancer Control, a collaborative effort between the American Cancer Society and Emory University, launched a clinical trial at Tata Memorial Centre in Mumbai, India to assess the utility of fluorescence imaging technology for the early detection of oral cancer. Oral cancer is the most common cancer and cause of cancer-related death among Indian men and third most common cancer among Indian women. India’s oral cancer mortality rates are among the highest in the world due to widespread oral tobacco use, mainly the chewing of paan (a mixture of betel leaf, lime, areca nut and sun-cured tobacco). In 2005, there were approximately 143,963 cases and 91,029 deaths in India due to oral and pharyngeal cancers. Five-year survival rates for oral and pharyngeal cancers in India range from 8% (hypo-pharynx) to 43% (lower lip). This clinical trial examines the potential of the VELscope, a fluorescence imaging device, to significantly improve early detection and treatment of oral cancer, a result that can be expected to increase oral cancer survival rates and enhance patient quality of life. Dr. Surendra Shastri, the head of Tata Memorial Centre’s Department of Preventive Oncology, and Dr. Paul Terry, an Emory University epidemiologist, serve as co-principal investigators on the study. Dr. Shastri and his staff, including co-investigators Drs. Gauravi Mishra, Pallavi Uplap, and S. V. Kane, warmly welcomed Society staff and volunteer co-investigators, including Dr. Mary Jo Lechowicz, a Winship Cancer Institute medical oncologist, and Dr. Susan Muller, an Emory University head and neck pathologist. The clinical trial, funded in part by the Woodruff Foundation, is expected to conclude by September 1, 2008.

American Cancer Society Supports World Cancer Day, February 4

In the first global initiative of its kind, the International Union Against Cancer (UICC), a global consortium of cancer-fighting organizations that includes the American Cancer Society, will lead a year-long effort to promote smoke-free environments for children. “I love my smoke-free childhood” will launch on World Cancer Day, February 4. The American Cancer Society is voicing its support for this initiative and World Cancer Day, and remains a leading organization in the efforts to reduce tobacco-related cancers worldwide. Protecting children from inhaling tobacco smoke and from initiating tobacco use is critical to nurturing a healthy start and reducing the risk of cancer later in life. Some 700 million children - almost half of the world's youth – regularly breathe air polluted by tobacco smoke, and tobacco companies are always seeking new smokers. On January 30, 2008, Altria, the world’s largest tobacco company, announced it would spin off its international division, creating a global company that could introduce harmful and addictive products in many countries without meaningful restrictions on marketing or product safety. The American Cancer Society and other groups fear this could fuel a pandemic of tobacco-related cancers, as well as heart and lung diseases. “I love my smoke-free childhood” marks the first full-year focus on a cancer-prevention practice endorsed by the World Cancer Campaign, a five-year movement launched globally on World Cancer Day 2007.