American Cancer Society

About: American Cancer Society is a nonprofit organization based out in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Cancer & Population. The organization has 1339 authors who have published 3700 publications receiving 688166 citations. The organization is also known as: American Cancer Society, ACS & American Society for the Control of Cancer.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Magnitude of Structural, Clinical, and Physician and Patient Barriers to Cancer Clinical Trial Participation.

Abstract: Background Barriers to cancer clinical trial participation have been the subject of frequent study, but the rate of trial participation has not changed substantially over time. Studies often emphasize patient-related barriers, but other types of barriers may have greater impact on trial participation. Our goal was to examine the magnitude of different domains of trial barriers by synthesizing prior research. Methods We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies that examined the trial decision-making pathway using a uniform framework to characterize and quantify structural (trial availability), clinical (eligibility), and patient/physician barrier domains. The systematic review utilized the PubMed, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and Ovid Medline search engines. We used random effects to estimate rates of different domains across studies, adjusting for academic vs community care settings. Results We identified 13 studies (nine in academic and four in community settings) with 8883 patients. A trial was unavailable for patients at their institution 55.6% of the time (95% confidence interval [CI] = 43.7% to 67.3%). Further, 21.5% (95% CI = 10.9% to 34.6%) of patients were ineligible for an available trial, 14.8% (95% CI = 9.0% to 21.7%) did not enroll, and 8.1% (95% CI = 6.3% to 10.0%) enrolled. Rates of trial enrollment in academic (15.9% [95% CI = 13.8% to 18.2%]) vs community (7.0% [95% CI = 5.1% to 9.1%]) settings differed, but not rates of trial unavailability, ineligibility, or non-enrollment. Conclusions These findings emphasize the enormous need to address structural and clinical barriers to trial participation, which combined make trial participation unachievable for more than three of four cancer patients.

The National Cancer Data Base report on colon cancer

Abstract: Background Commission on Cancer data from the National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) report time trends in stage of disease, treatment patterns, and survival for patients with selected cancers. The most current data (1993) for patients with colon cancer are described. Methods Five calls for data yielded 3,700,000 cases of cancer for the years 1985 through 1993 from hospital cancer registeries across the U.S., including 36,937 cases of colon cancer from 1988 and 44,812 from 1993. Results Interesting trends are as follows: (1) the elderly ( > 80 years) present with earlier stage disease than younger patients; (2) the National Cancer Institute recognized cancer centers have more patients with advanced disease than other types of hospitals; (3) all ethnic groups have generally similar stages of disease at presentation, except for African-Americans who have a slightly higher incidence of Stage IV disease; (4) the proximal migration of the primary cancer continues with 54.7% of primary colon cancer arising in the right colon in 1993 compared with 50.9% in 1988; (5) an interaction between grade and stage of cancer seems present; and (6) patients with Stage III colon cancer who received adjuvant chemotherapy had a 5% improvement in 5-year relative survival. Conclusions The NCDB data are useful for reporting what cancer treatments are being administered and what outcomes are occurring in the U.S. The data suggest an important biologic role for grade of cancer. They also suggest that African-Americans and other ethnic groups have the same outcome as non-Hispanic whites but that access to medical care may still be less. Finally, the utility of adjuvant therapy for Stage III colon cancer may just be beginning to be appreciated.

American Cancer Society guideline for the early detection of prostate cancer: Update 1997

Abstract: In summary, the 1997 revision of the ACS guideline for the early detection of prostate cancer is based on knowledge gained by a critical analysis of experience since the original version of 1992. This is only a milestone along a continuous journey rather than being the final destination. Other revisions will be considered when new knowledge becomes available, but for the present, this guideline is offered to health care professionals seeking to provide optimal care to asymptomatic men at risk for prostate cancer.

Preventing Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, and Diabetes: A Common Agenda for the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Heart Association*†

Abstract: Collectively, cardiovascular disease (including stroke), cancer, and diabetes account for approximately two-thirds of all deaths in the United States and about 700 billion US dollars in direct and indirect economic costs each year. Current approaches to health promotion and prevention of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes do not approach the potential of the existing state of knowledge. A concerted effort to increase application of public health and clinical interventions of known efficacy to reduce prevalence of tobacco use, poor diet, and insufficient physical activity-the major risk factors for these diseases-and to increase utilization of screening tests for their early detection could substantially reduce the human and economic cost of these diseases. In this article, the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Heart Association review strategies for the prevention and early detection of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes, as the beginning of a new collaboration among the three organizations. The goal of this joint venture is to stimulate substantial improvements in primary prevention and early detection through collaboration between key organizations, greater public awareness about healthy lifestyles, legislative action that results in more funding for and access to primary prevention programs and research, and reconsideration of the concept of the periodic medical checkup as an effective platform for prevention, early detection, and treatment.

Cancer statistics for African Americans, 2013

Abstract: In this article, the American Cancer Society estimates the number of new cancer cases and deaths for African Americans and compiles the most recent data on cancer incidence, mortality, survival, and screening prevalence based upon incidence data from the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries and mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics. It is estimated that 176,620 new cases of cancer and 64,880 deaths will occur among African Americans in 2013. From 2000 to 2009, the overall cancer death rate among males declined faster among African Americans than whites (2.4% vs 1.7% per year), but among females, the rate of decline was similar (1.5% vs 1.4% per year, respectively). The decrease in cancer death rates among African American males was the largest of any racial or ethnic group. The reduction in overall cancer death rates since 1990 in men and 1991 in women translates to the avoidance of nearly 200,000 deaths from cancer among African Americans. Five-year relative survival is lower for African Americans than whites for most cancers at each stage of diagnosis. The extent to which these disparities reflect unequal access to health care versus other factors remains an active area of research. Overall, progress in reducing cancer death rates has been made, although more can and should be done to accelerate this progress through ensuring equitable access to cancer prevention, early detection, and state-of-the-art treatments.