Charlotte volunteers needed for cancer study

Charlotte residents have an opportunity to take part in a study that has the potential to change the face of cancer for future generations, according to regional officials with the American Cancer Society.

Men and women between the ages of 30 and 65 who have never been diagnosed with cancer are needed to participate in the American Cancer Society Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3).

Charlotte enrollments in the study will take place at nine locations across the Charlotte area from March 12-16. The goal for participants is 1,200 and 7,500 in North Carolina, according to Kari Dahlstrom, the southeastern Atlantic communications director with the American Cancer Society.

“CPS-3 is not a test, nor does it set out to predict anything for individual participants,” said Dahlstrom. “The study will follow individuals over a period of 20 to 30 years.

“Every few years, individuals will receive a survey which they will fill out and return to the researchers. With 300,000 individuals across the nation participating, researchers will be able to see if there are any major trends occurring.”

Dahlstrom said that if over time some individuals report they have been diagnosed with cancer, researchers will then go to their blood sample taken during enrollment and look for similarities with others who have self-reported a cancer diagnosis.

Participants will receive an annual newsletter with broad-scale updates about the study findings.

To participate in CPS-3, an individual fills out a survey, has his/her waist measured and a small amount of blood drawn at the initial enrollment appointment. Enrollment takes approximately 30 minutes plus 45 to 60 minutes at home filling out the survey.

Dahlstrom said that researchers will use the data from CPS-3 to build on evidence from a series of American Cancer Society studies that began in the 1950s that have involved millions of participants.

The Hammond-Horn Study and previous Cancer Prevention Studies (CPS-I, and CPS-II) have played a major role in understanding cancer prevention and risk, and have contributed significantly to the scientific basis and development of public health guidelines and recommendations.

Those studies confirmed the link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer, demonstrated the link between larger waist size and increased death rates from cancer and other causes, and showed the considerable impact of air pollution on heart and lung conditions.

The current study, CPS-II, began in 1982 and is still ongoing.

But changes in lifestyle and in the understanding of cancer in the more than two decades since its launch make it important to begin a new study.

“Enrolling in the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Prevention Study 3 (CPS-3) is a way for individuals to get actively involved in the fight against cancer,” said Dahlstrom. “So many times we feel helpless when someone we know is diagnosed with the disease. CPS-3 gives people firsthand involvement with very little time invested.”