The Cancer Answer

Feb. 14–Feb. 21, 2005 Listen to the message

Cancer as a Chronic Disease

How close are we to finding an answer for cancer? We’re closer than you think!

In other words, cancer for many is no longer a death sentence, but a disease that people are living with like heart disease and diabetes.

By 2010, 13 million Americans will be alive and well despite having had a history of cancer.

We’re winning the war on cancer on a number of fronts.

• Better prevention from lifestyle changes, most importantly smoking cessation and healthy diet.
• Improved screening tests for colon, cervix, breast, and prostate cancer.
• Advances in treatment with less toxic, more effective therapies that not only extend lives, but increase the number of cures as well.

There IS good news in the fight against cancer. Through effective prevention, screening, and treatment, we are finding answers to cancer in the 21 st century.

The Good News About Cancer

We have been making great progress in the treatment of cancer. While a cancer diagnosis was once considered a death sentence, it is now often a chronic or curable disease. The National Cancer Institute estimates that of all adults diagnosed with cancer today, 64 percent can expect to be alive in 5 years. Seventy-nine percent of childhood cancer patients will be alive in 5 years and close to 75 percent will be alive in 10 years. In 2001 there were more than 9 million Americans either living with cancer, or having survived cancer in the past. (Sources: American Cancer Society; National Cancer Institute SEER Program)

We are also starting to see a slight drop in the rate at which people get certain cancers. For example, the rate of lung cancer in men and women is dropping as fewer Americans start smoking and more are quitting. As more Americans adopt a healthy lifestyle, including a healthy diet, exercise, not smoking, and protecting their skin from the sun, the hope of cancer specialists everywhere is that we will begin to see even bigger drops in cancer rates.

Why Has Cancer Survival Increased?

In the 1970s the 5-year cancer survival rate for adults was around 50 percent. Today it is 64 percent. This increase in cancer survival is related to three factors:

Screening tests such as mammograms (breast cancer), fecal occult blood testing/flexible sigmoidoscopy (colon cancer), and prostate specific antigen (prostate cancer) have become much more commonly used since the early 1990s. Detecting cancer early greatly improves the chances of long survival or cure.

Public awareness about cancer has increased. More Americans know about the importance of screening tests and are having them done. More Americans also know the early signs of cancer (for example a changing mole on the skin) and visit a doctor if they find a change that causes concern. Taking these proactive steps allows cancer to be found at an early stage, which again, improves the chances of long survival or cure.

There are new and improved treatments for several types of cancer. For example, in the past two decades significant improvements have been made in the treatment of breast cancer. New drugs and new combinations of older drugs have contributed to a decreasing breast cancer death rate by more than 2 percent per year from 1990 to 2001. (Sources: American Cancer Society; National Cancer Institute SEER Program)

More Good News:

Treatments for cancer are not only improving the chances of survival; improvements in therapies are being discovered that cause fewer side effects. Also, if a treatment does cause uncomfortable side effects, there are many new medicines available to help manage and alleviate them. For example, there are effective medications available that control the nausea and vomiting that is a commonly known occurrence and a concern to many who face cancer treatment. Today many patients no longer experience the severe bouts of nausea and vomiting that people only 10 to 15 years ago had to endure because new anti-nausea drugs are available. There are also other drugs available to help prevent or reduce fevers, easy bruising or bleeding, and anemia, which are all side effects of some cancer treatments.

For more detailed updates on the progress being made to fight cancer, go to the National Cancer Institute web site at www.cancer.gov. In the search box type “Annual Report to the Nation.” This will take you to several selections that provide details about progress in cancer detection and treatment.

Additionally, the American Cancer Society has recently published its annual update “Cancer Facts & Figures, 2005.” This booklet provides a wealth of statistics; written summaries of common cancers; and cancer risks, signs and symptoms. You can view and download a copy of the booklet at www.cancer.org. Under the section “Health Information Seekers” select “statistics” to access the booklet. You can also contact the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345 (1-800-227-2345) and they will be happy to send you a copy.