christian news: Report: Cancer, smoking rates higher upstate

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Report: Cancer, smoking rates higher upstate | Albany Watch

A new American Cancer Society report shows significantly higher rates of cancer, particularly lung cancer, in upstate New York compared with New York City.

The organization?s officials point to New York City?s higher taxes on cigarettes and more aggressive anti-tobacco media campaigns as evidence for lower cancer incidence and mortality.

?Our analysis shows a ?tale of two states,?? said Blair Horner, vice president for advocacy for the American Cancer Society of New York and New Jersey, in a statement.

Horner and Russ Sciandra, the state director for advocacy, presented the findings of the report at a news conference in Albany Monday morning.

?We hope this report will jump start a statewide discussion on how to reduce cancer incidence, identify cancers earlier and to assist those in treatment,? Horner said in the statement.

According to American Cancer Society data, in 2011, 107,260 new cases of cancer were diagnosed in New York, and 34,350 people died of cancer. Nearly 15 percent of new cases were prostate cancer, and a quarter of deaths were a result of lung cancer.

A different data set shows that the largest disparity between upstate and New York City rates was in lung cancer. Downstate, 65.8 men per 100,000 and 41 women per 100,000 have lung or bronchus cancer, compared with 84.3 men and 64.2 women outside New York City, according to state Department of Health data from 2004 to 2008. Nationally, the rates are 75.2 and 52.3 ? so downstaters are falling below that and upstaters are falling above it.

The lobbyists? main recommendations for state lawmakers: Increase funding to anti-tobacco programs, and enhance early detection of cancer by funding programs that provide those services free to individuals without insurance.

The report includes a county-by-county breakdown of cancer statistics in 2011, using data and estimates from the New York State Cancer Registry. The researchers warned against comparing one county to another or comparing one county to statewide averages, as some counties? small populations yield a high margin of error. But statistics listed for each county are valid, Horner and Sciandra said.

Thumb through the full report here.