American Cancer Society Holds Demonstration at North Shore-LIJ

A dozen cancer patients, survivors and their families gathered at Monter Cancer Center in Lake Success on October 12 for the kickoff of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s (ACS-CAN) “Cancer Votes” campaign, calling on politicians to make cancer issues a priority.

According to the group,15 people on Long Island die from cancer each day, showing the impact by having volunteers stand among 15 life-size silhouettes of men, women and children.

“The work done here at the North Shore-LIJ Cancer Institute and at other academic institutions affects the entire continuum of cancer care,” Dr. Myra Barginear, of the Medical Oncology department at Monter Cancer Center said in a statement. “The only way to uncover new treatments for cancer is to continue to invest in the promising work of scientists and physicians whose efforts have advanced the field so far. They are collectively responsible for spectacular scientific breakthroughs that are benefiting cancer patients everywhere.”

The Cancer Votes campaign is part of ACS-CAN’s efforts to put cancer issues front and center this in the 2012 election and ahead of the presidential debate being held at Hofstra University on October 16.  

“Most people don’t recognize the tremendous impact their elected officials have on the fight against cancer and the presidential debate being held here next week gives us a chance to talk about why cancer issues should be a priority,” ACS-CAN New York State Lead Ambassador Jim Pistilli said. “Many important decisions from diagnosis to end of life care are made not just in the doctor’s office, but also in the nation’s capital and the New York State Legislature.”

“As a cancer survivor, I know firsthand how important funding for advances in research and treatments are and why the support of our elected leaders matters,” said Sondra Nussbaum, a cancer survivor from Roslyn.

More information about the Cancer Votes campaign and the issues can be found at www.cancervotes.org.