September is National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, raising awareness of the second leading cause of death in children, and the leading disease-related cause of death for children ages 1-19.
The American Cancer Society takes a comprehensive approach to attacking childhood cancer from every angle by:
• Funding childhood cancer research, as well as pursuing advancements in basic science that can be applied to pediatric cancers. As of Aug. 1, 2018, the ACS is supporting 49 active, multi-year research grants, for a total of $25,399,500 specific to childhood cancer.
• Providing information to support families through diagnosis and treatment.
• Working to improve the quality of life for childhood cancer patients and survivors; and
September is also Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men (after skin cancer), but it can often be treated successfully.
There is no question that screening can help find many prostate cancers early, but there are questions about whether the benefits of screening outweigh the risks for most men. There are clearly both pros and cons to the prostate cancer screening tests used today.
The American Cancer Society recommends that men make an informed decision based on available information and a discussion with their doctor.
