At this year's annual Making Strides event, there will be a new way friends and family can help in the fight against cancer. Volunteers will be enrolling people in the Cancer Prevention Study 3, or CPS-3.
Alesia Mitchell says the study give researchers insight into what may cause cancer and how to prevent it. "I always say that it's not something that may benefit us but our grandchildren, our great grandchildren certainly," because it's a long-term study.
Previous similar studies have linked smoking to lung cancer and found the benefits of taking baby aspirin.
So upon entering the CPS3 tent at making strides, Alesia walked me through the CPS-3 enrollment process.
First, to be eligible you must be :
* Between 30-65 years old
* Have never had cancer excluding some skin cancers
* Willing to commit long term.
It starts with a questionnaire for women and men. It will ask about your health, screening, medications, and habits. Things such as "physical activity, how much of this do you get in and how many hours of sleep, exercise?" according to Mitchell.
Vitamins and supplements will also be part of the study and a volunteer will measure your waist.
A simple one-time blood test will also be done by a trained phlebotomist. Then you're done until 2 or three years later when they'll send you another questionnaire to fill out. It will go on about 20 to 30 years.
So this study is really capturing your life in a sense because if you enroll at age 30, you are really being followed through, during a major part of your life.
And everything you do or are exposed to will help researchers pinpoint possible causes of cancer or ways to prevent cancer, giving generations to come a "world with less cancer and more birthdays."
Here's information about the enrollment locations
CPS-3 Enrollment at Independence Blue Cross
Date: Friday, October 19, 2012
Time: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Location: 1901 Market Street Courtyard, Philadelphia
Appointments can be scheduled at ibxcps3.org
CPS-3 Enrollment at Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Date: Saturday, October 20, 2012
Time: 7:00 AM- 11:00 AM
Location: Memorial Hall, West Fairmount Park, 4231 Avenue of the Republic, Philadelphia
