Media Advisory - Annual Report Card on Cancer in Canada™

TORONTO, July 9, 2013 /CNW/ -

WHAT:				Media are invited to join the Cancer Advocacy Coalition of Canada (CACC) for the release of the 2012-2013 Report Card on Cancer in Canada^(TM)and presentation of the key findings.
WHERE:				InterContinental Toronto Centre Hotel, Humber Room
				225 Front Street West, Toronto, ON M5V 2X3
WHEN:				Thursday July 11, 2013
				10:15 a.m. - Media sign-in
				10:30 a.m. - News conference begins
				11:00 a.m. - News conference ends, one-on-one interviews available

Featured Speakers:*

• Dr. David Saltman, MD, PhD, FRCPC, staff medical oncologist, BC Cancer Agency, Victoria
  The Regulatory Approval and Funding of Precision Medicine in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
  Lung cancer is the most common cancer and cause of cancer related deaths in Canada. The majority of lung cancers (85 per cent) are classified as non-small cell. For a subset of patients with adenocarcinoma of the lung, clinical testing for the detection of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene mutations and anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) rearrangements should now be considered the standard of care in order to identify the most appropriate treatments.
  
  *Additional presentations on precision medicine.

• Hai V. Nguyen, PhD, postdoctoral researcher, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Toronto
  Effectiveness of Bans Against Smoking Inside Private Vehicles in Canada
  Since April 2008, Canadian provinces (with the exception of Quebec) started to adopt the ban against smoking in private vehicles carrying children. Canada led the way in adopting such legislation and this analysis shows the bans have been effective in reducing exposure to second hand smoke without causing smokers to light more cigarettes at home.

• Jaime McDonald, BScPharm, pharmacist, Ottawa
  The Postal Code Lottery of Cancer Prevention in Canada: Discrepancies in Public and Private Funding for Smoking Cessation Products
  Despite recent advances in cancer therapy, the overall survival of patients with advanced lung cancer and other smoking-related malignancies has not changed dramatically for decades. This detailed analysis of how and where smoking cessation supports are available to Canadians shows gaps that make the prevention battle harder to win.

• CACC Board Member
  The Cancer Drug Access Website
  The Cancer Drug Access website is freely available to all Canadians who wish to track exactly which cancer drugs their own province offers and on what terms, as compared to other provinces. The drugs are listed by name, disease type, date of Health Canada approval, indication, as well as access/funding by province. Based on these parameters, graphical summaries of access and funding by province are created automatically with each search. With this comprehensive information, the website is a unique reference tool for information on access to cancer drugs in Canada.

The full Report Card and all related materials will be on the CACC website by 11:00 a.m. the morning of the news conference at www.canceradvocacy.ca.

Note: Patient group representatives will also be available at the news conference for media interviews

 

 

 

 

 

SOURCE: Cancer Advocacy Coalition of Canada

For further information, to RSVP, or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Alyssa Acorn 416.924.5700 ext. 4041 or [email protected]
Tonya Johnson 416.418.3672 (mobile on site) or [email protected]