World Cancer Day (WCD)¹ is on February 4. Sklar needs your help in spreading awareness, tips on prevention and the need for further research.

WCD began 17 years ago on February 4, 2000. It was established by the Paris Charter at the World Summit Against Cancer for the New Millennium in Paris. The Charter‘s main goal is to promote worldwide awareness, prevention, and further research of this illness to find a cure. By creating global networks and alliances made up of leading professional organizations around the world, the Charter aims to upgrade services provided to patients, sensitize common opinion and mobilize the global community against cancer. The last article of the Charter establishes February 4 as World Cancer Day.

Worldwide, over eight million people die from cancer each year². February 4 is the ideal opportunity to spread the word. The main objective of WCD is to get as many people as possible around the globe talking about this disease. With that in mind, Sklar would like you to join in on World Cancer Day by allowing survivors to share their stories in the comments below. Your story does not need to be long. If you don’t have a story, you may leave encouraging words to those who are fighting this illness. 

Here are 3 quick ways you can also help:

1. Share your activity, event or campaign on WCD Map of Impact
2. Support WCD on Social Media by joining in #WeCanICan and #WorldCancerDay
3. Mention WCD on your website

Please go to www.worldcancerday.org for more information.

More about this disease

Cancer is the result of an uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body, and develops when the body’s normal control mechanisms stop working. When these abnormal cells grow out of control they sometimes give way to a mass of tissue known as a tumor. Not all cancers develop tumors; leukemia is an example of a non-tumorous type.

Cancer can develop anywhere in the body. There are five main categories:

• Carcinomas – grow in the skin or tissues that line internal organs
• Sarcomas – develop in the bone, cartilage, fat, muscle or connective tissue
• Leukemia – start in the blood and bone marrow
• Lymphomas – attack the immune system
• Brain and Spinal Cord – develop in the central nervous system

Causes of Cancer

Educating people about certain lifestyles that increase the risk of cancer development is the first step in cancer prevention. Some risk factors are:

• Smoking
• Consuming alcohol
• Obesity
• Poor diet

Common Treatments for Cancer:

• Surgery – direct removal of the tumor
• Chemotherapy – chemicals that kill cancer cells
• Radiation – use of X-Rays to kill cancer cells

The future of cancer highly depends on levels of treatment and options for the patient. There is a new diagnostic tool available for doctors, called the genomic tumor assessment. This procedure examines a patient’s tumor genetically to identify the mechanism that caused it in the first place. This approach helps create a more personalized treatment for each patient. It is estimated that half of men and one-third of women are at risk of developing some type of cancer.³

References:

¹ http://www.worldcancerday.org/

² http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/health-professional/cancer-statistics/worldwide-cancer

³ https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-basics/lifetime-probability-of-developing-or-dying-from-cancer.html