President Bush, in a recent press release, declared April Cancer Control Month. It's a month for educating Americans about cancer, for raising awareness about treatments, for renewing the commitment to fighting this deadly disease.

Bush makes no mention in his release of the millions he just cut from the National Cancer Institute budget and how this might hinder this month's initiative, but he does offer a few relatively inexpensive ideas for individuals who wish to minimize their risk of developing the disease that remains the country's second leading cause of death.

"Individuals can reduce their risk of developing cancer by practicing healthy eating habits, exercising, limiting sun exposure, avoiding tobacco, knowing their family history, and getting regular screenings from the doctor," he writes.

Bush goes on to honor those lost to cancer and commends the strength of the 10 million people in the United States surviving the disease. He extends his gratitude for medical professionals, researchers, family members, and friends who support cancer patients. And he closes with a little history -- and his very own proclamation.

"In 1938, the Congress of the United States passed a joint resolution (52 Stat. 148; 36 U.S.C. 103) as amended, requesting the President to issue an annual proclamation declaring April as 'Cancer Control Month.'

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 2007 as Cancer Control Month. I encourage citizens, government agencies, private businesses, nonprofit organizations, and other interested groups to join in activities that will increase awareness about the steps Americans can take to prevent and control cancer.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-first."

GEORGE W. BUSH

One out of three Americans will get cancer before they die. Who is at the highest risk?

Dr. David Nanus, an oncologist who has been treating cancer patients for over twenty years, says that "If you're obese or overweight, you have an increased incidence in a number of cancers". Nanus also tells CBS news that someone with a family history, someone who smokes, has a high fat diet and does not exercise are in the highest risk category for developing cancer in their lifetime.

According to the American Cancer Institute about one third of cancer deaths in 2006 were related to nutrition, physical inactivity and being overweight or obese -- and could have been prevented.

Nanus also says that "The biggest problem is the fear factor. People are so afraid of being diagnosed with cancer they wait. Even waiting three months can mean a difference between life and death.

It's March. And that means it's the national month for Brain Injury Awareness, Endometriosis Awareness, Nutrition Awareness, Eye Health and Safety Awareness, Multiple Sclerosis Awareness, Sleep Awareness, Problem Gambling Awareness and my favorite, for the purposes of The Cancer Blog -- Colorectal Cancer Awareness.

Colorectal cancer -- cancer of the colon or rectum -- is a disease that affects both men and women and is preventable nearly 90 percent of the time.

Starting at age 50, men at women at average risk for the disease should get screened. Those with increased risk, like African-Americans who typically develop colorectal cancer at younger ages, should be screened even earlier.

Screening -- by way of fecal occult blood test (FOBT), flexible sigmoidoscopy, and colonoscopy -- is critical because colorectal cancer often occurs with no symptoms. Symptoms do sometimes present themselves in the later stages of the disease and include rectal bleeding, bright red blood in or on the stool, change in bowel habits, stools that are narrower than usual, general stomach discomfort, diarrhea, constipation, frequent gas pains, unexplained weight loss, constant fatigue, and vomiting. Persistence of any of these symptoms for more than two weeks warrant an immediate visit with a health professional.

Treatment for this disease, which strikes about 153,000 people and causes about 52,000 deaths each year, includes surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.

In the spirit of this National Colorectal Awareness Month, experts recommend remembering these important points:

• Colorectal cancer can be prevented.
• Screening for the disease can identify polyps -- grape-sized growths in the colon and/or rectum -- that can be removed to prevent cancer from developing.
• The magic age for screening is 50 -- unless you have an increased risk for the disease.
• Colorectal cancer is treatable.
• Regardless of your age, know the risk factors, know the symptoms, and know your family history.
• Talk with your health professional about colorectal cancer and your own risk for the disease.

Nearly 20 percent of women and eight percent of men with lung cancer have never smoked, say researchers involved in a study of one million people in the United States and Sweden. The likely culprit in these lung cancer cases is secondhand smoke.

It's not yet clear why women are more likely to develop the disease. Perhaps they are more susceptible to all forms of smoking -- whether direct or secondhand -- or maybe because more men smoke than women, women are more likely to be exposed to secondhand smoke.

While smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer, there are other factors to blame for disease incidence. Radon, asbestos, chromium, and arsenic are all associated with lung cancer.

According to the American Cancer Society, lung cancer will be diagnosed in 213,000 Americans in 2007. The disease will kill 160,000.

It's been reported before and sadly, it's still true -- African-American cancer death rates are higher than for the overall population.

A new report from the American Cancer Society reveals the death rate is 35 percent higher in African-American men and 18 percent higher in African-American women. Lung cancer is the most common cause of cancer death among this population.

While the cancer plight of this group is improving, African-Americans are still more likely to be diagnosed at later stages of the disease. And late diagnosis often translates into a decreased chance for survival.

A new study shows that African Americans have the lowest colon cancer survival rate. The researchers think the racial gap may be due to a few different factors including colon cancer screening and treatments given.

The study included 14,000 adults diagnosed with colon cancer or rectal cancer. Eleven percent where African Americans, all had health insurance. They were the most likely to die of their disease, were more likely to be diagnosed with advanced tumors and less likely than whites to undergo colorectal cancer surgery.

Tumor stage and treatment seem to account for the racial gap in survival but the researchers think there might be other factors they are not aware of at this time.

Glioblastoma is the deadliest form of brain cancer, most often striking patients in their 50s and 60s who after diagnosis typically have only 10 to 12 months to live.

Glioblastoma is a shocking diagnosis -- and while the tumors don't tend to spread outside the brain, they resist surgery and return even when half the brain is removed. They also are resistant to most treatment. Clearly, insight into this deadly cancer is a must. Thankfully, a little slice of insight has just emerged.

Armed with findings from experiments in mice, researchers report they've discovered a clue that might help unravel the mystery of glioblastomas.

Studies show that some mice recovered from a human form of brain cancer when given bone morphogenetic proteins that appeared to interfere with the cancer growth process in stem-like cells. This leads researchers to believe the proteins could be used to stop cancer growth and prevent it from recurring.

The research is not ready for prime time, says one of the researchers who maintains there is still a long way to go. Yet the findings are promising -- and they suggest stem cells may play a critical role in tumor formation.

About 17,000 to 18,000 Americans develop brain cancer each year. Half of these patients will be diagnosed with glioblastoma.

Minnesota tops state health rankings for the fourth straight year, according to the annual United Health Foundation report -- which also shows Americans are 0.3 percent healthier in 2006 than they were in 2005.

The United Health Foundation survey has been around for 17 years -- and for 11 of these years, Minnesota has been at the top of the healthy list.

Rankings are based on factors such as access to health care, incidence of preventable disease, smoking rates, child poverty rates, and motor vehicle deaths. Minnesota boasts a low rate of uninsured (8.4 percent), a low rate of child poverty (10 percent), and a low infant mortality rate (5.1 deaths per 1,000 live births).

The other states in the top five are Vermont, New Hampshire, Hawaii, and Connecticut. Louisiana was rated the least-healthy state and shares this spotlight with Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Arkansas.

A few states -- New Mexico, Idaho and West Virginia -- show declines in overall health. And others -- Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Kansas -- show the most improvement.

My mom's best friend died from pancreatic cancer just three months after her diagnosis with the disease. One of my co-workers lost her mother to the same disease just weeks after diagnosis. Another co-worker's husband lost his battle with pancreatic cancer after a 15-month all-out fight. And a family friend has somehow been surviving this deadly disease for years now. He's the exception, defying the odds rarely in favor of long-term survival.

About 33,730 people will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2006. Many of them -- 32,300 -- will die from the disease that is rarely caught early. Pancreatic cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in the United States.

If we made no further progress in breast cancer research from this day on, the number of women dying from breast cancer five years from now would still drop substantially because we've progressed so much over the past few years, says MD Eric Winer in the October 2006 issue of Oprah magazine. Winer, director of the Breast Oncology Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, is right. There has been a lot of progress. Breast cancer research is on a roll. And here are seven reasons why.

Health care coverage for working Americans is like a brittle tree in a hard wind -- and the larger limbs are beginning to snap. Between the years 2000 to 2005, 6.8 million more people became uninsured according to the latest report from the U.S. Census Bureau's Housing and Household Economic Statistics Division. Current data estimates 46.6 million people are without health insurance coverage. As employer-based health insurance continues to fade, government programs are taking up the slack -- up to a point. But given the lack of funding, there is only so much that can be offered.

In a statement issued by the Center for American Progress, "These problems did not just happen: they resulted from flawed economic and health policies which force Americans to work more for less. When it returns after Labor Day, this Congress should act to mitigate these problems by passing a straightforward minimum wage increase and extend health funding for programs like the State Children's Health Insurance Program. Moreover, policy makers should recognize the need for major change, such as providing affordable health care to all Americans and taking action to address growing income inequality."

Some are calling for a government-based universal health care system that guarantees health care coverage for all Americans. Others are suggesting a mix of private and public health care coverage. What ever the solution, there certainly needs to be one.

We can start with a shift in perspective and change in expectation. If you are working full-time for a company, presumably your efforts are helping that company make a profit. Health insurance coverage should not be viewed as a luxury benefit, nor should the largest burden of health insurance premiums be shouldered by the employee whose earnings just meet living expenses. Yet, this is happening every day in this country. The hard wind continues to batter the brittle tree.

Personally, I am not sold on a government-run, government-backed universal health plan simply because I have covered too many horror stories about rationed care in other industrialized countries. It seems a combination of programs might be the solution but the government and our elected officials certainly need to be held accountable for implementing programs that insure all Americans.

American Public Health Association Georges Benjamin is quoted by United Press International as saying, ""This is the worst news we've had all year. Our nation is not secure if we're not healthy."

George W. Bush declared five years ago that no federal funding would be allocated for embryonic stem cell research. He has not changed his mind -- and two weeks ago vetoed a bill that would allow this research. He says that supporting the bill would be supporting the taking of innocent human life in order to find medical benefits for others. For Bush, it crosses a moral boundary. But most Americans support stem cell research and would like to see the Bush White House loosen its restrictions, says Kathy Hudson, director of the Genetics and Public Policy Center at Johns Hopkins University in Washington. Until this happens, though, scientists and researchers find themselves in an ethically-charged minefield, operating carefully and responsibly and ethically.

Dr. Peter Dirks -- a neurosurgeon specializing in childhood brain cancer at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children who has been making headlines around the world for isolating brain cancer stem cells two years ago -- is one person weighing in on controversial issue of stem cell research. Dirks does not use embryonic stem cells but instead uses cells from tumors removed during brain surgery that would otherwise be discarded. But he says embryonic stem cell research is critical for his success. It's what has led to the findings that exist today -- and it holds the clues for further discovery. It's a delicate matter, though, regardless of the politics surrounding the issue. Before he harvests stem cells from any patient's brain tumor, for example, Dirks asks parents to sign a three and a half-page consent form. And that's just the beginning.

Federally-funded embryonic stem cell research does not yet have its beginning here in the United States. Maybe the tides will change. Maybe we will see progress. Maybe we won't. Only time will tell.

Roy Thayers has experienced death up close, as he was caregiver for his first wife as she battled cancer -- he knows what it is like to watch someone fight for their life -- and he was there when she lost her life to cancer.

Thayers, who at the age of 77 lives alone, was recently told by his doctors that he was at risk for a fatal heart attack and might lose his life if he didn't undergo heart surgery to unblock the heart valves immediately.

The problem of avoiding death and living longer became a matter of time and money. When the NHS put Thayers on a nine-month waiting list for heart surgery, he worried he might not have that long to wait -- considering the urgency with which the doctors had impressed upon him concerning the imminent threat of a fatal heart attack without surgery. He was told he could have the surgery immediately if he paid for it himself.

How can that be? I preface this post with the disclaimer that I am not a medical professional. I am open to the possibility of extenuating circumstances. But honestly, if an obese person told me they were living a healthy lifestyle -- eating nutritious meals and exercising vigorously at least three times a week -- I'd be looking over their shoulder for Alice and the hookah pipe smoking caterpillar -- because I'd be under the impression reality had just taken a wavy turn to the left.

According to the Michigan-based health-care research firm Thomson Medstat, in a survey study involving 11,000 people, the majority of obese Americans stated they are living a healthy lifestyle because of healthy living habits and over 75 percent indicated they are involved in vigorous exercise at least three times a week.

To this Dr. David Schutt, from Thomson Medstat said, "There is, perhaps, some denial going on. Or there is a lack of understanding of what does it mean to be eating healthy, and what is vigorous exercise." Ya think? I am certain I may have just alienated over 60 percent of the American population, because that is how many people in this country are considered overweight, according to the Records from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

I do not get as much exercise as I should. While I am well aware of the benefits of consuming healthy food, I will admit to the enjoyment of the occasional Little Debbie Cosmic Brownie or slice of Funfetti cake with Funfetti frosting because quite frankly, it is cheery food. But I am realistic that the ten extra pounds I am carrying around has to do with the eating more and moving less syndrome, and I cannot imagine anyone who is overweight not realizing or owning up to the reasons for the extra weight. As to extenuating circumstances all I can think is perhaps the survey questions were framed in such a way as to make the results appear as if overweight people live in some foggy realm of denial? What's your take on this topic?

Welcome back from the weekend! Here is a review of what we were talking about during the second week in July in our other health blogs.

From The Cardio Blog:

• Bucindolol: experimental heart failure drug.
• Mammograms can find heart health problems.
• Eggs: bad or not bad for heart health -- which is it?
• The clock of life and time of day determines heart health.
• Extreme obesity raises mortality rate in women.
• Austrailian stem cell research innovates new heart treatment.
• Public physical activity program helps weight loss, lower blood pressure.
• Tuna imported from Latin America has highest mercury level.
• Eating less helps slow aging process.
• Teens helped to learn healthy diet habits with household food rules.
• Volunteer work helps seniors stay active and healthy.
• Working overtime worse for womens health.
• Aging and single living combined linked to higher heart disease risk.
• Tubby kids motivated to exercise by reward of TV time.
• Humidity and high temps linked to rise in summer heart attacks.
• Comedian Red Button dies of vascular disease.
• Migraine aura linked to increased heart attack stroke risk.
  

From The Diabetes Blog:

• Martial arts black belt uses youth group to fight diabetes.
• FDA approves GlaxoSmithKline diabetes drug.
• Pink Floyd Syd Barrett dies from diabetes complications.
• Update on fatal NC car crash involving diabetic driver.
• Major study links Type 2 diabetes and glaucoma risk.
• Life insurance industry plays catch-up.
• A1c Champions program trains diabetes mentors.
• Danish study confirms suspected diabetes, multiple sclerosis link.
• Debate continues on virtues, shortcomings of inhalable insulin, Exubera.
• Blogger's advice to T2 diabetics: follow in footsteps of movie producer Weinstein.
• Diabetes, obesity blamed for sky-high US kidney failure rates.
• Canadians await approval of inhalable insulin.
• Lifestyle ed could greatly reduce diabetes onset in older Americans, say researchers.

To your good health! To a great week!