American Cancer Society President-Elect Elmer Huerta, MD
This week in Mexico City, the National Cancer Institute in Mexico (INCan) and the American Cancer Society launched a historic three-year partnership to build awareness and capacity to fight cancer in Mexico and Latin America. The weeklong training began with a lively press conference with speakers including two Mexican cancer survivors, American Cancer Society President-Elect Elmer Huerta, MD, and Alejandro Mohar, MD, the general director of INCan. Almost 30 journalists attended the press conference, which received widespread news coverage by leading Mexican broadcast, radio, and print media outlets. With support from the Pfizer Foundation, the Society is building a critical network between leading Latin American cancer nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to strengthen these organizations’ work with cancer survivors and to empower them to fight back and raise cancer awareness. The Mexican NGOs in the 14-member network are Fundacion CIMA, Con Ganas de Vivir, and Grupo Reto. Other countries in this initiative include Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Venezuela.