First-Ever Nationwide Survey Finds: Half of all Canadians Know Someone who has Battled Lung Cancer, Yet Most Remain in the Dark on Scope, Virulence of the Disease

While Lung Cancer Will Kill Twice As Many Canadians As Any Other Cancer:

• Two-thirds of all Canadians cannot identify the leading cancer killer
• 89% of Canadians - including 83% of current or former smokers -- have never talked to their doctor about their risk for lung cancer
• Only 1% know radon gas is the second-leading cause of lung cancer
• 54% of Canadians say they are not concerned about getting the disease
• 17% say they are more likely to dance on stage with Justin Bieber than to ever get lung cancer

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The "Invisible" Women's Cancer?  Lung Cancer Kills 80% More Women Than Breast Cancer, Yet Only 11% of Canadian Women Know Lung Cancer is the Leading Cancer Killer of Women

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Smoking & Lung Cancer: When It Comes to Lung Cancer, A "Blame the Victim" Mentality Pervades

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Lung Cancer Canada President: "Greater Awareness, More Hope, and Less Blame Are Key to Progress in The Lung Cancer Fight"

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TORONTO, Nov. 1, 2012 /CNW/ - While lung cancer will kill two times more Canadians than any other cancer in 2012, the vast majority of Canadians cannot identify the nation's leading cancer killer, according to the results of a nationwide poll released here today by Lung Cancer Canada, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to lung cancer education, patient support, research and advocacy.

Of 1,600 adults surveyed by the national polling firm Pollara Strategic Insights, 51% said they know a family member, friend, co-worker or neighbor who has, or had, lung cancer.  Despite many Canadians' personal connections to the disease and the fact that lung cancer accounts for more than a quarter of all cancer deaths in Canada, 66% of those surveyed either misidentified the cancer that kills the most Canadians every year or had no idea what it was.

The poll also evidenced scant awareness of just how deadly the disease is. When asked about the five-year survival rate for lung cancer - which has hovered around 15% for decades - 91% of Canadians either had no idea what it was or had an inflated view of the disease's five-year survival rate (overestimating on average by almost 300%).

"While lung cancer will kill two times more Canadians in 2012 than any other cancer - including thousands of never-smokers - our poll underscores the considerable misinformation, misperception, and stereotyping attending the disease," said Hailee Morrison, executive director of Lung Cancer Canada. "A serious national conversation about lung cancer is long overdue. November, which is Lung Cancer Awareness Month in Canada, is the perfect time to start it."

The interviews were conducted online between September 12 and September 18, 2012 among adults at least 18 years of age living in Canada.  Results were weighted by age, gender, and region to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the general population.  Were this a randomly dialed telephone poll, the margin of error for results based on the total sample would be +/-2.5 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. Split sample questions would have a margin of error for results of +/-3.5 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

"The survey reveals a gap as wide as Hudson Bay between Canadians' understanding of lung cancer and the brutal toll it is exacting from BC to Newfoundland," said Robert Hutton, EVP of Pollara. "I don't know of any other disease where there is such a big difference between public awareness and social impact.  And it's not exactly like what you don't know about lung cancer can't hurt you. In fact, it's the opposite."

To continue reading the full press release, please click here.
http://lungcancercanada.ca/resources/site1/general/PDF/LCC-Poll-Press-Release.pdf

SOURCE: Lung Cancer Canada

Contacts:

Hailee Morrison
416.785.3439
[email protected]

Arielle Densen
202-543-1258
[email protected]