“An estimated 62,420 Ohioans were diagnosed with invasive cancer in 2009. The information contained in this report will help the American Cancer Society and our partners better understand where to direct our efforts as we seek to end suffering from cancer,” Robert Paschen, Society spokesman, said.
The report showed lung cancer to be the most invasive, with 10,690 new cases in the state. Female breast cancer followed close behind with 7,340 new cases. Prostate cancer and colorectal cancer each had about 6,000 new cases. Deaths stemming from lung cancer claimed the most cancer deaths in Ohio in 2009 with 7,300.
“I would advise all smokers to quit. The moment you quit smoking, your lungs start to repair,” Dr. Li-Fen L. Chang of the SOMC Cancer Center said. “It will take many years for your body to repair all the damages cigarettes have done. However, the earlier you quit, the higher the chance to prevent cancer.”
In Ohio, cancer incidence and death rates are higher than the national rates. In Ohio, there are 466.4 per 100,000, while the national rate is 462.9 per 100,000. The cancer mortality rate in Ohio is eight percent higher than the nation’s.
Dr. Chang suggested ways for Ohioans to lower the mortality rate.
“Establish a primary care physician and have an annual physical exam and lab work,” she said. “Whenever there are symptoms such as shortness of breath, coughing up blood, chest pain, hoarseness, difficulty swallowing and unintended weight loss, see the doctor and have a chest X-ray. Just like all malignancy, early detection saves lives. The proportion of late-staged lung cancer at the time of diagnosis is higher in Ohio, which contributes to higher death rate.”
Dr. Chang also spoke about preventative measures such as exercise and maintaining a healthy weight.
“I would also like to encourage routine exercise, no matter what you enjoy — jogging, weight training, bicycling, swimming, walking, Zumba, Yoga…etc. As long as you keep your body active, and exercise at least four times a week, your immune system will be stronger and thus, less likely to allow a mutated cell to survive and develop to cancer,” she said.
“The other preventive measure that everyone should be paying attention to is maintaining a healthy weight. Southern Ohio has a large percentage of the population that is overweight. It’s been shown that being overweight contributes to approximately 20 percent of cancers. The fatty tissue stores extra calories and they are an effective factory that manufactures extra hormones such as estrogen and progesterone,” Dr. Chang said. “Many cancers are shown to be hormone related or induced, if one has extra amount of hormone that they don’t really need. Therefore, I encourage you to attend Weight Watchers, ‘Biggest Loser’ contests in your workplace, or any weight loss program. It is important to change the shopping habits. We are all habit forming; we usually purchase ‘what we like to eat,’ not ‘what’s good to eat’. Before shopping, make plans and write down the healthy foods to purchase such as fresh vegetables, or fruits, proteins, and cut down processed foods and sweet things. Who does not like dessert, bread, or potatoes? However, these contribute to the carbohydrates you take in, and when in excess to what your body can use, they are then stored in the fatty tissue as fat. Set a limit of the portion and number of carbohydrates you eat.”
Survival probability is rising, giving hope and proof that screenings, medicines, and treatments are preventing and improving. The five-year relative survival probability for all cancers nationally between 1999-2005 is 67 percent, up from 50 percent in 1975-1977. Melanoma of the skin is the exception to the decreasing cancer death rate, which has risen 15 percent among whites since 1990. The sudden rise in melanoma-related deaths is attributed to the widespread use of tanning beds and overexposure to sunlight.
“Preventing skin cancer is to protect yourself from UV light exposure. Do not utilize the tanning bed, instead use the self-tanning lotion, spray, bronzers, and other sunless tanning techniques,” Chang said. “Most tanning parlors offer sunless tanning. If you have a family member diagnosed with melanoma, it increases the risk for you to develop melanoma. It’s important you share the information with your doctor and be diligent on self skin surveys once a month. SOMC Cancer Center also offers free skin cancer screenings every May.”
Within Scioto Country, 66 people died of lung cancer, 12 died of breast cancer, and six of prostate.
While genetics certainly can play a role in the probability of getting cancer, lifestyle is a major factor that is highly preventable.
“Healthy lifestyle can prevent approximately 25 percent or more of cancers. Let’s motivate our loved ones, relatives, friends, coworkers, neighbors, church congregations, etc. to adapt new healthy lifestyles. Yes, you can do your part to prevent cancer and prolong good quality of life,” Dr. Chang said.
“While we have certainly made encouraging progress in the fight against cancer, there is still work to be done,” Alvin D. Jackson, M.D., Ohio Department of Health Director, said. “We are committed to working with partners such as the American Cancer Society to promote cancer prevention and early detection among Ohio’s citizens.”
The American Cancer Society continues to work toward the goal of saving lives. The ACS successfully defended Ohio’s smoke-free law in 2008, to protect citizens against secondhand smoke. The ACS had $18.5 million in cancer research grants at work in Ohio institutions and gave lodging to over 1,200 cancer patients who had to travel from their homes to Cleveland or Cincinnati to receive treatment. In addition, the American Cancer Society linked thousands in Ohio with information and local resources in the fight against cancer.
MAJAL PERRY can be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 234 or via email at mperry@heartlandpublications.com
They may have confused what they spent ATTENDING CONFERENCES in 2008 ($18,158,259) with research. That's 4 TIMES AS MUCH attending conferences as researching a cure! And why would they spend more? It's MUCH more lucrative to receive vast amounts of money to tell us how to live than to actually look for a cure. They'd be out of business if they found a cure. I'm done with these people!
By the way, did you know you're 80%-90% more likely to develop diabetes if you quit smoking? Didn't see THAT in this article, did you?
http://abclocal.go.com/wjrt/story?section=news/health&id=7261221
"During that transition from smoker to non-smoker, something odd happens, according to the study. The Diabetes risk goes up -- way up, like 80 to 90 percent for the most recent ex-smokers.
Diabetes is a huge risk factor for heart disease. "They can pretty much attribute most of that to the fact that people change their eating habits and gained weight."
I'll never give these people another dime.
Who Is At Risk of Developing Cancer?
Everyone. Anyone can develop cancer, but risk
increases with age. About 77% of all cancers are diagnosed at 55 and older.1 In this report, lifetime risk refers to the probability that an individual born free of cancer and living to 85 will develop cancer over the course of a
lifetime.
Wow ok so we need to ban smoking so we can all die of cancer in a nursing home!
Ohioans need to be more involved in demanding clean up of our air and water. Our health and lives are at stake.