I thought it was about time to write a post to highlight why I am running for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. While the cause is close to my heart because my grandmother and three of my aunts have fought cancer, I have learned that many others are also affected by this disease.
I thought I’d share 10 facts about cancer that I learned today…and maybe are new for you as well.
(Sources include: The World Health Organization, Global Healing Center, The American Cancer Society, & Kristina’s Rainbows of Hope)
- There are over 100 types of cancers
- Cancer starts when abnormal cells in part of the body start to grow out of control
- Cancer is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, accounting for 7.6 million deaths in 2008
- Lung, stomach, liver, colon, and breast cancer cause the most cancer deaths each year.
- One in three people will contract cancer, one in four will die from the disease
- One in every 330 Americans will develop cancer by the age of 20.
- 77% of all new cancer cases are found in people 55 years of age or older
- Childhood cancers are the #1 disease killer of children, more than asthma, cystic fibrosis, diabetes, and pediatric AIDS combined
- Typical cancer treatments include chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormone therapy, biological therapy, cancer drugs…among some others.
- More than 30% of cancers could be cured if detected and treated early. More than 30% of cancer could be prevented, mainly be not using tobacco, having a healthy diet, being physically active and preventing infections that may cause cancer.
I think early prevention and education about the disease are extremely important. I am lucky that many of the people I know that have fought cancer have been cancer survivors.
On a side note, today I took another easy day from training. Rested/iced my leg and used the foam roller. I called my dad today to see if he thought it would be ok to run a long run this weekend (Dana-Farber is having a group run this Sunday 14-16 miles), he encouraged me to take it easy until next weekend to really allow my leg to heal. I know it is the right thing to do, but needed my dad’s confirmation. Hey, who said a girl at 26 didn’t need her parents’ opinion/approval still?
