Speed the Search for Better Treatments by Joining the GO2 Lung Cancer Registry!



Researchers need your help as they seek to better understand how lung cancer impacts people differently and how to improve treatment and quality of life.  That’s why the GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer started its Lung Cancer Registry.   The international Lung Cancer Registry, available to join now, aims to double the 5-year survival rate of lung cancer patients from 20% to 40% by 2025.   “By sharing your lung cancer story, contributing your experiences as a person with lung cancer or a caregiver of someone with lung cancer, you are helping the research community develop new treatments,” according to GO2.  Let’s dive into more about the registry, how you can join, and how it can help Latinos.   Joining the Lung Cancer Registry   Participants interested in ...

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From Fluke to Survivor: How Angelina Vazquez Felsing is Contributing to Latino Cancer Research



“It was kind of a fluke.”  That’s how Angelina Vazquez Felsing describes the events that led to her diagnosis of lung cancer.   Like many, Vazquez Felsing maintained a healthy lifestyle. She didn’t smoke. She ate healthy, ran regularly, and had no family history of cancer.   Vazquez Felsing, who immigrated from Mazatlán, Mexico, in 1972, grew up in the Floresville area and has lived in San Antonio for many years.   It all started when Vazquez Felsing went to her yearly checkup through the wellness program at her job, where she has worked as a systems analyst for 17 years.  “They found something that was a little bit odd. They said, ‘Well come back in a year, and we'll do another CT scan,’” she said. “And when I went back, they found that whatever ...

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How One Latina Fought the ‘Invisible Disease’



When she turned 50, Jacqueline “Jackie” Marino quit smoking. A year after the Puerto Rican native and resident of Fairfax Station, Va., kicked the habit as a gift to herself and in response to her son's pleas, she felt in great health... ...except a nagging sinus infection in 2014. Jackie went to an allergist about her sinus infection. Because she had coughed up blood, the doctor sent her for an imaging evaluation; it showed a spot on her lung. Could it be lung cancer? Lung cancer, dubbed an “invisible disease,” often doesn’t manifest until diagnosed in later stages, when there are fewer chances for long-term survival. For Latinos, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death for men and second-leading for women, according to the American Cancer Society. Jackie needed ...

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Cancer Quickly Becoming the No.1 Cause of Death in the US & Among Latinos



Cancer is quickly becoming the No.1 killer in the United States and the leading cause of death among Latinos, Fox News reports. New health statistics show cancer is quickly overtaking heart disease as the top cause of death in the U.S., despite death rates falling in the last 25 years. According to government figures cancer is the “leading cause of death in certain groups of people, including Hispanics, Asians, and adults ages 40 to 79.” The American Cancer Society predicts there will be 1.7 million new cancer cases this year, and 600,000 deaths. “Government figures for 2014 show cancer was the leading cause of death in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, ...

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High-Sugar Diet Linked to Breast and Lung Cancer



A high-sugar diet doesn’t only increase the risk of obesity and diabetes, but it may also increase your risk of breast and lung cancer, The Houston Chronicle reports. For the study University of Texas M.D. Anderson researchers put mice in different groups and fed one of four diets. After six months the researchers concluded that mice on a starch diet “had measurable tumors, whereas 50 to 58 per cent of the mice on sucrose-enriched diets had developed mammary tumors.” The team of researchers also concluded that the risk of lung metastases was significantly higher in mice on the sucrose or fructose rich diet. "We found that sucrose intake in mice comparable to levels of Western diets led to increased tumor growth and metastasis, when compared to a non-sugar starch diet," said ...

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New Spanish-Language Anti-Smoking Website



About 5 million U.S. Latinos smoke, and lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among Latino men and second-leading cause among Latina women, according to federal data. To address this important public health issue, the National Cancer Institute developed http://espanol.smokefree.gov/, a website created specifically for Spanish speakers who want to quit smoking or know someone who does. Resources include interactive checklists and quizzes, advice on how to help a loved one quit, and real-time support and ...

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Cancer Survival Disparities Increase among Latinos, Minorities As Cancers Become More Treatable



Racial and ethnic disparities in cancer survival are greatest for cancers that can be detected early and treated successfully, including breast and prostate cancer, according to a new study, Medical News Today reports. Disparities are small for pancreatic, lung and other cancers with more limited early detection and treatment options. The study, published in the October 2009 issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention, found that, compared with whites, substantial survival disparities existed in more treatable cancers in Latinos, African-Americans, American Indians/Alaska Natives, and several Asian/Pacific Islander population subgroups. The finding highlight the need to develop specific health policies and interventions to address social ...

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