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Public Health & Cancer Awareness

Each month, the UVM Cancer Center shares messages related to a cancer-specific health observance.

FEBRUARY: CANCER PREVENTION MONTH

Experts believe that up to 50% of cancers can be prevented. That’s because certain daily habits can make us more likely to get cancer. Changing these habits may help prevent cancer.

5 lifestyle changes that may reduce your cancer risk:

  • Quit smoking (802quits.org is Vermont's tobacco cessation resource. ). 
  • Make healthy food choices.
  • Get regular checkups & screenings.
  • Stay active.
  • Protect your skin with sun safe behaviors.

LEARN MORE

 

MARCH: COLORECTAL CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

March is colorectal cancer awareness month. With regular screening, almost all colorectal cancer can be prevented. If you are 45 or older, please talk to your doctor about screening options. 

VIEW RESOURCES

 

 

MAY: SKIN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

Did you know that Vermont has the second highest incident rate of melanoma in the U.S.?
May is skin cancer awareness month and by limiting sun exposure you can reduce your skin cancer risk.
Three Prevention Tips:

  1. Cover up. Wear wide-brimmed hats, sun-protective clothing and sunglasses.
  2. Stay indoors between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. or seek shade.
  3. Wear sunscreen, with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 30 or higher.

Early detection promotes successful treatment, talk to your doctor about your screening options. 

Summer Safety Tips: Find some simple health and safety tips for summertime activities.

Something New Under The Sun: Learn about the signs of melanoma.

9 Things I'd Never Do As A Dermatologist: Summer's coming. How many of these ski 'don'ts' do you do?

 

SEPTEMBER: PROSTATE CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

Prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer. UVM Cancer Center clinical member, Shahid Ahmed, MD, MBBS, a medical oncologist specializes in cancers of the urinary system and the reproductive organs in men and provides an overview of diagnosis and tips to manage treatment side effects in this Healthsource article. 

READ ARTICLE

 

OCTOBER: BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

25th Annual Women's Health and Cancer Conference: View recordings of presentations and panels about surgical options, survivorship, integrative care, palliative care, and breakthrough advances in the research.

Breast Cancer Portfolio: Learn more about the UVM Cancer Center's research, education, community outreach, and clinical care related to breast cancer.

Clinical Trials: See what clinical trials are being offered related to breast cancer.

Genetic Testing for Cancer and Risk Assessment: Learn about the team of clinicians who provide genetic screening and risk assessment.

Screening Guidelines: The American Cancer Society recommends these screening guidelines. 

Breast Cancer Screening: Reach out to your primary care provider or the Breast Care Center if you are due for a screening.

Support Services: There are many resources for patients in treatment or patients who have completed their treatment, including support groups and the popular Steps to Wellness class. 

 

NOVEMBER: LUNG CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

Lung Cancer Public Health Campaign. The UVM Cancer Center teamed up with Dartmouth Cancer Center and Vermonters Taking Action Against Cancer to encourage more Vermonters to get screened for lung cancer. When detected early, local tumors can be removed which increases the patient's survival rate from 24% to 60%.

Learn more about:

  • Guidelines
  • Screening locations in Vermont
  • Eligibility requirements

VIEW CAMPAIGN

Lung Cancer Research. Learn more about the Cunniff lab's promising new therapy for mesothelioma and metastatic cancer, which is currently a Phase I clinical trial. 

Clinical Trials: See what clinical trials are being offered related to lung cancer.

Cancer Center Trainees Receive Awards to Present Their Research at AACR

April 4, 2024 by Katelyn Queen, PhD

Shannon Prior, a graduate student in the lab of Paula Deming, PhD, conducts research in a tissue culture hood

UVM Cancer Center, Cancer Cell, trainee members, Shannon Prior and Gopika Nandagopal, have each received a prestigious travel award to attend the annual meeting for the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) in San Diego, California. The AACR annual meeting brings together scientists, clinicians, and other healthcare professionals from across the country, to share the latest advances in cancer science and medicine. The conference, to be held April 5-10, 2024, features a multidisciplinary scientific program centered around making progress towards preventing and treating cancer. 

Prior and Nandagopal are PhD students in the lab of Paula Deming, PhD, and will present posters on their research at the annual meeting. The Deming lab studies lung adenocarcinoma, the most common primary lung cancer in the United States, focusing on lung cancer driven by mutations in two genes, KRAS and STK11. 

A native Vermonter, Prior has been involved in cancer care for many years, working in the UVM Cancer Center Clinical Trials Office before beginning her PhD. Prior will present her graduate work showing that starving lung cancer that contains KRAS/STK11 mutations of the cellular nutrient glutamine promotes a more aggressive and metastatic state. This contrasts the effects of glutamine starvation in other glutamine dependent cancers where previous work has shown therapeutic potential for glutamine starvation. Prior has identified a metabolic pathway, the Hexosamine Biosynthetic Pathway (HBP), that KRAS/STK11 mutated cells may utilize to avoid cell death due to glutamine starvation. Future work will investigate how STK11 may regulate the HBP metabolic pathway to ultimately identify therapeutic targets. After completing her graduate work Prior hopes to continue to work with the Cancer Center to reduce the burden of cancer in Vermont. 

At the AACR meeting, Nandagopal will present her work characterizing whether mutations that occur within a certain region of the STK11 gene, the C-terminal domain, are likely to be benign or contribute to disease. Her findings indicate that there are likely key residues within this region, that when mutated, alter STK11 function and contribute to disease progression. As a first-time attendee at the AACR annual meeting, Nandagopal is excited to share her research and connect with other cancer scientists. 

To learn more about the research our cancer center members conduct please visit our member directory here.