CDC: State-Specific Trends in Lung Cancer Incidence and Smoking --- United States, 1999--2008

September 16, 2011

What is already known on this topic?

Cigarette smoking causes lung cancer in men and women. Wide variations in state tobacco control efforts, smoking prevalence, and lung cancer incidence have been observed in the United States. Lung cancer incidence has been decreasing for the past several decades among men but not among women.

What is added by this report?

Lung cancer incidence is beginning to decrease among women and is continuing to decrease among men in most states. Lung cancer rates are declining more rapidly in the West, which corresponds with smoking behavior; states with low smoking prevalence and high quit ratios are concentrated in this region.

What are the implications for public health practice?

Decreases in lung cancer incidence provide compelling evidence for state tobacco control policies, such as increasing tobacco excise taxes, enacting smoke-free laws, and funding policies to assist smokers in quitting. To continue these decreases in lung cancer incidence, current tobacco control funding for states needs to be increased to implement and sustain successful programs to reduce cigarette smoking and secondhand smoke exposure.

Read more.

Saturday, September 24, 2011 - 10:00am - 12:00pm

Register Online

Folly Beach, South Carolina

Please consider attending the Kites for a Cure™, on Folly Beach, an extraordinary family event in honor of Keisha Kirkland.

Dr. Keisha Kirkland, was diagnosed with Stage 3 Lung Cancer. As a healthy, athletic, non-smoker, we were all shocked at this devastating news. Keisha and her husband, former Clemson and NFL pro-bowl linebacker, Levon Kirkland have partnered with the national non-profit organization Uniting Against Lung Cancer (UALC) and all proceeds from this event will benefit the research programs of UALC.

Kites for a Cure will gather families and friends together to enjoy a beautiful afternoon on the beach, while bringing greater lung cancer awareness to Folly Beach area.

With a $25.00 donation, you will receive a kite you can decorate and a T-shirt. Event will take place in front of Tides Folly Beach

Thousands raised for local deputy fighting cancer

Thousands raised for local deputy fighting cancer:
"Hundreds braving the hot weather, riding out to combat cancer."

by Fraendy Clervaud
Posted: 6-4-2011

Nearly three hundred people riding to combat lung cancer Saturday afternoon at Ryan's Ride.

They braved the hot temps to help raise money for Richland County Deputy Mark Ryan who's battling stage four lung cancer.

Sheriff Leon Lott invited folks from across the Midlands to take part.

Ryan is the single father of three daughters.

Organizers say the event raised a total of $10,315.

The money will help with Ryan's mounting medical bills.

"I think without today's event it would make or break him. It's vital to him getting his medical bills paid and its just great to see this event happen for him in his honor," says Master Deputy James Stone.

Participants signed up at Rays Place in Ballentine and than started to ride around Lake Murray.

The second benefit ride will take place July 23, 2011. For more information about the event call 803-309-8888.

New SmartState Endowed Chair to develop cancer drugs in S.C.

via lowcountrybizSC

Top scientist will be based at S.C. College of Pharmacy, help lead state’s Cancer Drug Discovery Center of Economic Excellence


SOUTH CAROLINA, SC - May 26, 2011 - One of the nation’s leading cancer drug researchers has moved his work to South Carolina thanks to the state’s SmartState Program (previously known as the CoEE Program).

Dr. Patrick Woster will be based at the S.C. College of Pharmacy (SCCP), where he will help lead the Center of Economic Excellence in Cancer Drug Discovery and become the SmartState Endowed Chair in Medicinal Chemistry. Woster is one of four endowed chairs supported by the Cancer Drug Discovery Center, a Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Center in which the University of South Carolina is a partner.

Read more.

Deputy deals with devastating cancer diagnosis

Fellow deputies holding benefit ride to help with medical bills

By NOELLE PHILLIPS - nophillips@thestate.com

For most of his life, Richland County Sheriff’s Deputy Mark Ryan has served his community.

He has been a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical technician. He has raised money for the American Red Cross, American Cancer Society, Easter Seals and Muscular Dystrophy Association. He has helped families recover from fires that destroyed their homes.

Now, it’s time for Ryan to be on the receiving end of the help, as he battles advanced lung cancer.

Photo - TIM DOMINICK - tdominick@thestate.com

“It makes me feel good to do that kind of stuff,” Ryan said. “Being a recipient is difficult.”

To help Ryan with his medical bills, fellow deputies have organized Ryan’s Ride: A Dam Ride for Cancer on June 4 at Lake Murray.

They also are wearing black and red bracelets to show support for him and his three daughters, ages 14-20.

Ryan has been a deputy with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department for three years but is on short-term disability. He has health insurance, but the bills still pile up.

Sheriff Leon Lott said he hired Ryan because he knew a man with devotion to single-handedly raise three girls would make a good deputy.

“His heart is in the right place with what he wanted to do,” Lott said.

Monday, Ryan and his daughters agreed to talk with reporters, a tearful interview for the girls as they watched their father talk about his disease, his love for them and his fellow Richland County deputies.

“It’s been very emotional for me,” Ryan said. “I’m proud to be a part of this organization, and I’m honored they’re helping me like this.”

If you go -

Ryan’s Ride: A Dam Ride for Cancer will be June 4 around Lake Murray.

The first vehicle will leave at 11 a.m. from Ray’s Place on Dutch Fork Road in Ballentine. The ride ends at 5 p.m. at the same location with a barbecue and silent auction. Motorcycles, convertibles and other automobiles are welcome to participate.

Registration is $25 per person and includes a T-shirt.

For more information or a registration form, email ryansryde@gmail.com.


Read the entire article here.

NASCAR legend Owens prepares for the homestretch

By MIKE HEMBREE
For the Herald-Journal
GoUpstate.com

It's a long way from the dusty leavings of what once was a country road — Reidville Road — in Spartanburg to the newly rarefied air of the NASCAR Hall of Fame.

A certified pioneer of stock car racing. Winner of hundreds of races as a driver. A championship car builder and team owner. An innovator in racing safety.

Owens' racing story is interwoven with that of NASCAR — with the notable exception that his story predates NASCAR's.

Read more about NASCAR legend Cotton Owens' career and both he and his wife's battles with lung cancer.

South Carolina High School senior awarded John Atkinson Lung cancer Foundation Scholarship after losing parent.

The John Atkins Lung Cancer Foundation is proud to announce their out-of-state scholarship recipients: Jovanna Davis of Florida, Christiana Allen-Pipkin of Michigan, Sandra Whaley of South Carolina and Sharmae Young of Missouri. Congratulations to all of you!


About the John Atkinson Lung Cancer Founation

The foundation is providing leadership by increasing awareness of lung cancer and advocating for increased funding for research. We are dedicated to erasing the stigma that lung cancer can only happen to smokers. The foundation was named for John Atkinson, a nonsmoking father of three and devoted husband, who died of lung cancer in June of 2009 at the age of 40. The foundation carries the torch that John lit in the battle to end lung cancer.

To increase awareness of lung cancer in order to prevent the disease, to erase the stigma associated with lung cancer, to advocate for increased funding for lung cancer research, and to provide scholarships to students who have lost a parent to lung cancer. For more information - www.johnatkinsonfoundation.org

Cancer Survivors Day Celebration at Georgetown Hospital System in the Lowcountry

Cancer Survivors Day Celebration
on Sunday, June 5, 2011 from 2:00 PM until 4:00 PM
Event is free & open to all local cancer survivors and caregivers
Location - Wachesaw Conference Center, 4367 Riverwood Drive, Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

Georgetown Hospital System is hosting a First Annual Cancer Survivors Day Celebration, sponsored in part by Waccamaw Oncology, and held in conjunction with National Cancer Survivors Day Foundation, Inc.

The "Chain of Survival" themed event will feature presentations from a two-time cancer survivor, a caregiver and oncologist. Displays and information will be available on such topics as support groups, cancer rehabilitation programs, nutritional needs, transportation and more. Refreshments will be offered.

Chain Project
A unique project recognizing survivors will be displayed at the event. Names, diagnosis and length of survivorship will be written on laminated paper links to form a chain. Survivors who wish to participate in the chain project should email their information to dmagnanelli@georgetownhospitalsystem.org.

The finished chain will be displayed at Francis B. Ford Cancer Treatment Center in Georgetown after the June 5 event.

Steve Spurrier is participating in the Palmetto Health Foundation McDaniels Golf Classic & VIP Auction - June 16th & 17th.

Mark your calendars for the 2011 McDaniels Golf Classic and VIP Auction benefitting the Palmetto Health Foundation. The auction will be held Thursday, June 16 at The Zone and the tournament will be held Friday, June 17 at Fort Jackson Golf Club. Auction tickets are $100 each and are available online. Call Anna Saunders at 434.2830 for more information.

Treatment Shows Promise in Quelling a Type of Lung Cancer

Personalized Medicine Leads One Patient to Ask, "Can I go Scuba Diving?"
By Lisa Marshall of CU Medicine Today
University of Colorado School of Medicine

(May 2, 2011) The words "adenocarcinoma of the lung" required no further explanation. As a physician herself, Gene Burges knew what they meant.

"I told my husband, ‘I’ve had a really wonderful life,’" says Burges, 64, who received her grim diagnosis in April 2009. "I knew it was the end."

But nearly two years later, the dermatologist and associate professor at Medical University of South Carolina has kicked the chronic cough and night sweats, and—according to her grateful sons—has returned to her "energetic self." After watching the glowing orange beacons of cancer disappear from her scans, she went so far as to buy a new house this year.

Read more.

Upstate Hospital First In SC To Offer New Lung Cancer Surgery

Surgeon, Robot Team Up For Procedure
Mike McCormick, WYFF News 4 Reporter

The State reports: Senate approves 50-cent cig tax increase

House vote to override expected veto to be close
By JOHN O'CONNOR and RODDIE BURRIS - joconnor@thestate.com rburris@thestate.com

NASCAR vice president of corporate communications and former Darlington president Jim Hunter is a lung cancer warrior...

"Jim Hunter is back doing to the two things he loves the most — being at the race track and playing golf.

That wasn’t the case seven months ago when the former Darlington Raceway president was diagnosed with small-cell lung cancer in his right lung Oct. 31."

Read more.

from The State back in January: Love, faith, provide armor in cancer fight for Maddens

Love, faith, provide armor in cancer fight for Maddens

In memory of Mr. Herman Madden.

The Post and Courier: Cigarette tax increase a winner

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Letter to the Editor

The South Carolina state Senate can play a pivotal role in improving critical health concerns by passing legislation to increase our state's lowest-in-the-nation cigarette tax to at least a dollar a pack. Smoking remains the leading preventable cause of premature death in this state.

It costs each household in South Carolina an estimated $560 annually for smoking-caused government expenditures, regardless of whether a household member smokes.

We all know health care costs from smoking are enormous, in tax dollars and medical costs. Often overlooked is the personal cost of lung cancer, emphysema and heart disease to those stricken and to their families, friends and co-workers. Almost everyone has had that experience.

H.3584, legislation to increase our seven-cent cigarette tax, was sent to the Senate nearly a year ago. Our state is contemplating deep budget cuts with severe consequences that will affect many of our citizens. Increasing the cigarette tax will reduce overall smoking (and youth initiation to smoking) while raising state revenues at the same time. Bringing H.3584 to a vote in the Senate cannot come soon enough.

A significant cigarette tax increase is a win-win-win solution for South Carolina. It is a public health win that will reduce smoking and save lives, a fiscal win that will raise needed revenue and reduce smoking-caused health care costs, and a political win because raising cigarette taxes has the strong support of the public.

How many reasons do we need?

June Deen

Director of Advocacy
American Lung Association in South Carolina and Georgia
Gadsden Street
Columbia

This letter was also signed by: Nancy Cheney, director of government relations, South Atlantic Division of the American Cancer Society, and Yardley Steedly, S.C. director of government relations, the American Heart Association.

Check out the Upstate Women's Show - Featuring Lung Cancer Survivor, Keish Kirkland of WYFF 4

Keish Kirkland, weather forecaster at NBC's WYFF Channel 4, will share her story - "Living with a Life Altering Diagnosis...Lung Cancer."

See her at the Upstate Women's Show
Friday, August 28th at 11 am on the Entertainment Stage at Greenville's Carolina First Center

WYFF4 reports: Upstate University To Impose Fines On Smokers

Lander University Imposes Fines On Student, Faculty Smokers

GREENWOOD, S.C. -- Lander University is preparing to give added emphasis to its status as the first state college or university in South Carolina to ban the use of tobacco products on its campus, a prohibition that was introduced with the start of the fall semester in 2007.

Lander president Daniel Ball accepted the recommendations of a committee that he appointed to come up with a strategy for introducing the tobacco-free policy to newcomers, and reminding returning students, faculty and staff that the use of tobacco is not allowed anywhere on Lander property. The ban includes campus parking lots and the university’s off-campus student housing facilities. The smoking ban also applies to visitors.

Read more.

SCCA: SC Cancer Registry publishes 10-year report

June 17, 2009

DHEC's S.C. Cancer Registry publishes first 10-year report

The S.C. Central Cancer Registry has published its first 10-year report of cancer trends in the state, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced today.

"This report is a milestone for the state," said DHEC Commissioner Earl Hunter. "Cancer is one of the leading causes of deaths and illness. It is critical not only to be able to track the number of deaths, but to have information on the number of people who have been diagnosed with the disease. This cancer survival data provides another avenue to measure the burden of cancer on our residents."

"The S.C. Central Cancer Registry has maintained national standards of quality, timeliness, and completeness evidenced by certification from the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries each year since 1997," he said. "Meeting those standards in all categories assures that the data are valid and reliable for use in the healthcare and research communities across the state and nation."

According to the report, deaths due to cancer decreased by 18.2 percent from 1996 through 2005 for all races and genders combined. The total incidence for all cancers decreased by 3.2 percent over the 10-year period.

"Decreasing cancer death rates is a sign of progress in the fight against cancer," he said. "But there is still much to be done. The report shows that there are still cancer disparities, as indicated by the differences in cancer death rates among races."

The five leading types of cancer were prostate, lung, breast, colorectal and bladder. The five leading causes of cancer deaths were lung, colorectal, breast, prostate and pancreatic.

Five-year observed survival rates for all cancers combined in the state were 51.4 percent, meaning a little over half the patients with cancer survive for five years. The median survival time, which is the time at which half the patients with cancer are still living, was 66.5 months or about 5.5 years. Survival was highest for white females (55.8 percent), followed by white males (50.3 percent), black females (47.1 percent) and black males (44.6 percent).

Cancers with the poorest survival for all race and gender groups in order from the poorest to the best were liver, pancreatic, lung, brain and esophageal.

"The survival data will help our public health efforts by providing insights about where our next steps need to be for the best results as we work to fight cancers," Hunter said.

For more information and data from this report, please visit the DHEC Web site or you may call the Cancer Registry toll-free at 1-800-817-4774.

The New York Times: George MacPherson, Theater Producer, Dies at 78

George MacPherson, a theater producer who helped bring down the curtain on bus-and-truck road shows and usher in the big-box-office age of polished national touring companies, died on Wednesday in Orangeburg, S.C., where he lived. He was 78.

The cause was lung cancer, said his daughter, Morag.

Mr. MacPherson, who got his first taste of show business glamour as a veterinarian with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, helped theater producers maximize returns on their shows by sending out touring companies with high production values and first-rate performers to markets beyond the big cities.

This approach, restructured in the early 1980s at American Theater Productions, where he was executive director, led to increased subscription sales and a boom for the tour business, which nearly doubled its gross revenues from 1988 to 1991.

“In those days, touring was pretty rudimentary,” said Miles Wilkin, the chief executive of the tour producer Broadway Across America. “George was adept at working with New York producers, acquiring shows and then realizing their full potential on the road.”

Read more.

Looking for volunteers in the Midlands Area to help me organize a Free To Breathe 5K Lung Cancer Awareness Walk...

I'm looking for fellow volunteers/advocates that may be interested in helping me organize a Free To Breathe Lung Cancer 5K Awareness Walk in Columbia. Possibly Saturday, November 14, 2009 at the Riverfront Park in downtown Columbia. (November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month)

Everyday is still a struggle, since losing my mother in 2007. My faith, family, and close friends keep me going. My dream is to one day bring a state chapter of the National Lung Cancer Partnership here to South Carolina, to support survivors and caregivers, as well as, raise money for much needed research.

The National Lung Cancer Partnership is a group of leading doctors, researchers, patient advocates, and lung cancer survivors who are working together to improve treatments for lung cancer patients. They raise research dollars through their Free To Breathe campaign, a 5K fundraising awareness walk.

You can find more information here:

Free To Breathe - Fundraising for Lung Cancer Research and Awareness

The National Lung Cancer Partnership

Our neighboring state of North Carolina started the first state chapter in 2006 and have many events planned for this year. I'd love to one day do the same here.

Please consider helping me.

While I Breathe, I Hope...for a CURE for Lung Cancer!

Angie B. Derrick

You can send me a message here, or at scagainstlungcancer@gmail.com