World Cancer Day: A leading international awareness day, create a future without cancer, the time to act is now
World Cancer Day every 4 February is the global uniting initiative led by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC). By raising worldwide awareness, improving education and catalysing personal, collective and government action,
we're working together to reimagine a world where millions of
preventable cancer deaths are saved and access to life-saving cancer
treatment and care is equal for all - no matter who you are or where you
live.
Created in 2000, World Cancer Day has grown into a positive movement for everyone, everywhere to unite under one voice to face one of our greatest challenges in history.
Each
year, hundreds of activities and events take place around the world,
gathering communities, organisations and individuals in
schools, businesses, hospitals, marketplaces, parks, community halls,
places of worship - in the streets and online - acting as a powerful
reminder that we all have a role to play in reducing the global impact
of cancer.
This year's World Cancer Day's theme, 'I Am and I Will',is
all about you and your commitment to act. We believe that through our
positive actions, together we can reach the target of reducing the
number of premature deaths from cancer and noncommunicable diseases
by one third by 2030.
World Cancer Day themes
The 2019-2021 campaign theme is 'I Am and I Will'. The theme seeks to
counter the negative attitude and fatalistic belief that nothing can be
done about cancer, and instead promotes how our personal actions can be
powerful and impactful.
In 2016, World Cancer Day started a three-year campaign under the
tagline of 'We can. I can.', which explored the power of collective and
individual actions to reduce the impact of cancer. Prior to 2016, the campaign themes included "Not Beyond Us" (2015) and "Debunk the Myths" (2014).
Year
Theme
2019 - 2021
'I Am and I Will.'
2016 - 2018
'We can. I can.'
2015
Not Beyond Us
2014
Debunk the Myths
2013
Cancer Myths - Get the Facts
2012
Together let's do something
2010-2011
Cancer can be prevented
History
World
Cancer Day was established on 4 February 2000 at the World Cancer Summit
Against Cancer for the New Millenium, which was held in Paris.
The Charter of Paris Against Cancer,
which was created to promote research, prevent cancer, improve patient
services, also included an article establishing the anniversary of the
document's official signing as World Cancer Day, was signed at the
Summit by the then General Director of UNESCO, Kōichirō Matsuura, and then French President Jacques Chirac in Paris on 4 February 2000.
canceris a broad term. It describes the disease that results when cellular changes cause the uncontrolled growth and division of cells. Some types of cancer cause rapid cell growth, while others cause cells to grow and divide at a slower rate.
Certain forms of cancer result in visible growths called tumors, while others, such as leukemia do not. Most of the body's clls have specific functions and fixed lifespans. While it may sound like a bad thing, cell death is part of a natural and beneficial phenomenon called apoptosis.
A cell receives instructions to die so that the body can replace it with a newer cell that functions better. Cancerous cells lack the components that instruct them to stop dividing and to die.
As a result, they build up in the body, using oxygen and nutrients that would usually nourish other cells, cancerous cells can form tumors, impair the immune system and cause other changes that prevent the body from functioning regularly.
Cancerous cells may appear in one area, then spread via the lymph nodes. These are clusters of immune cells located throughout the body.
Genetic factors can contribute to the development of cancer. A person's genetic code tells their cells when to divide and expire. Changes in the genes can lead to faulty instructions, and cancer can result.
Genes also influence the cells' production of proteins, and proteins carry many of the instructions for cellular growth and division. Some genes change proteins that would usually repair damages cells. This can lead to cancer. If a parent has these genes, they may pass on the altered instructions to their offspring.
Some genetic changes occur after birth, and factors such as smoking and sun exposure can increase the risk.
Other changes that can result in cancer take place in the chemical signals that determine how the body deploys or expresses specific genes.
Chemotherapy - To kill cancerous cells and shrink tumors
Hormonetherapy - To cure prostate and breast cancer
Immunotherapy - Boost immune system to fight against cancer cells
Radiationtherapy - High dose radiation to kill cancerous cells
Stem cell transplant - To cure blood related cancers
Surgery - To remove lymph nodes to prevent the disease spread
Types
The most common type of cancer in the U.S is breast cancer, followed by lung and prostate cancers, according to the National Cancer Institute, which excluded non melanoma skin cancers from the findings.
Each year, more than 40,000 people in the country receive a diagnosis of one of the following types of cancer:
Bladder
Colon and rectal
Endometrial
Kidney
Leukemia
Liver
Melanoma
Non Hodgkin's lymphoma
Pancreatic
Thyroid
Other forms are less common. According to the National Cancer Institute, there are over 100 types of cancer.
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