Guest Post:: Can You Help?

We've all been touched by cancer one way or another...If you're in the Puget Sound area, please see if you qualify to help.  Spread the word!

Guest post written by Jessica Gonzalez.

There are few things I know for certain. But one thing I know is that I would do absolutely anything to protect the smiling, blue-eyed, stuffed-animal loving baby girl that captured my heart when she was born 17-months-ago. 

My own mom died of cancer when I was only seven.  I was just old enough that I remember how awful cancer is. While I can’t protect my baby girl from everything, there is something I can do to help protect her and future generations from a disease that took my mom more than 20 years ago and that will claim more than 575,000 American lives this year. That’s why I’m helping the American Cancer Society find volunteer participants for its latest study.

From Sept. 15-27, residents of Puget Sound can enroll to be part of Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3). The study helps researchers better understand the genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors that can cause or prevent cancer, which ultimately saves lives!

Enrolling in the study and helping to change the future face of cancer is easy:

·         A 30 minute interview and commitment to enroll

·         A blood draw

·         A survey

That’s it! From there, participants will receive periodic surveys asking for information about lifestyle, behaviors and other factors related to their health.

You can find the enrollment site closest to your area, and schedule your appointment by visiting www.cps3seattle.org.

To be eligible for the study, you must:

·         Be between the ages of 30 and 65

·         Have no personal history of cancer

·         Be willing to make a long term commitment to filling out periodic follow-up questionnaires

I hope you’ll join me in sharing information about CPS-3 with your friends and in enrolling to participate. Because, really, who doesn’t want to be able to say they helped eliminate cancer?