Event designed to bolster enrollment in national cancer prevention study

There is an old adage that says the only things that are certain in this world are death and taxes. Well, The University of Toledo and the American Cancer Society are using tax day as a backdrop to inspire the community to participate in a study that may very well help millions avoid the latter.

UT will be joined by the American Cancer Society at 10 a.m. Monday, April 15, as a new name and signage are unveiled for its recently opened Eleanor N. Dana Cancer Center. The event precedes the first round of enrollment in Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3).

CPS-3 is the third phase of an ongoing effort to discover the causes of cancer. In phase one, the study officially linked cigarette smoking to lung cancer. In phase two, obesity and certain foods were identified as a cause. Now CPS-3 will work to increase understanding further.

“While there may be a great deal of truth to the adage that Benjamin Franklin made famous, it is our hope that this study will help to further our understanding of the causes of cancer and help to prevent people around the world suffering from it,” said Esther Fabian, UT associate vice president for branding and creative services, and one of the organizers of the drive for study volunteers.

The study is open to anyone between the ages of 30 and 65 who has never been diagnosed with cancer. The local goal is to enroll 625 adults from various racial and ethnic backgrounds here in northwest Ohio, and to collect data that may one day help eliminatecancer as a major health risk.

The first step is to register online at ToledoCPS3.org. Participants will then go to the UT enrollment sites in John F. Savage Arena on April 16-17 and at the Eleanor A. Dana Cancer Center on April 18 and 20. Participants will be asked to read and sign a consent form, complete a short written survey and provide a waist circumference and a small blood sample. Volunteers will be asked to complete surveys on an ongoing basis.

For more information on how to register to participate in the study, visit ToledoCPS3.org or contact Andrew Mariani at 888.227.6446 ext. 5103 or andrew.mariani@cancer.org.