Great news last week out of Massachusetts where Governor Charlie Baker and the state legislature enacted new legislation to prevent youth under the age of 18 from using indoor tanning devices. ACS CAN staff and volunteers have been working hard to protect Massachusetts teens from the harms of indoor tanning and we're hoping that this early legislative win in 2016 sets the tone for other states to do the same.
We invited Raha Assadi-Lamouki to share her story - the same story she shared with the vice president - and tell us what the Moonshot initiative means to her and her family.
Today is World Cancer Day (WCD), a day when the world again unites in the fight against cancer. Organized by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), World Cancer Day is saving lives by raising awareness about cancer, and pressing governments and individuals across the world to take action.
After years of stalled and anemic funding levels for critical cancer research, Congress came together at the end of last year in a major way to pass the biggest funding increases for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Cancer Institute (NCI) in more than a decade. Champions, including Rep. Kevin Yoder from Kansas, acknowledged the importance of making cancer a national priority and rallied together to make sure resources were available to advance detection tests, treatments and therapies for a disease that is expected to kill nearly 600,000 people in America this year.
For Americans who do not use tobacco, diet, weight and physical activity level are the leading risk factors for cancer. There is also growing evidence that a healthy weight, good nutrition and regular physical activity improve health outcomes and quality of life for those undergoing cancer treatment, and reduce the risk of recurrence for cancer survivors. ACS CAN advocates for legislation and policies that promote healthy eating and active living. On Dec. 10, ACS CAN, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) and the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) hosted a policy seminar on nutrition and physical activity interventions for cancer survivors.