Presentation of Proclamation for National Cancer Research Month
AACR CEO Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (h.c.):
Thank you so much, Mayor Nutter, for your extraordinary kindness and for the honor you have bestowed upon me this morning, but most importantly, upon the American Association for Cancer Research — the organization that is located right here in this wonderful city of Philadelphia.
AACR CEO Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (h.c.) and City of Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter.
The fact that this citation is being given to us during the special month of May, National Cancer Research Month, is especially meaningful to our 29,000 members all around the world who are working so hard to prevent and cure this insidious disease.
As you pointed out, I was born and raised here in this great city — a product of South Philly actually — and I have always felt that Philadelphia offered me not only a great education, but also a solid footing in what is important in life — family, loved ones, and the ability to work in an environment where I know that every day I and my colleagues have the opportunity to make a difference in the fight against cancer.
As you well know, Philadelphia is rich in academic as well as clinical excellence. It is particularly blessed with outstanding comprehensive cancer centers and, of course, with the presence of the American Association for Cancer Research, which is the oldest and largest scientific society of scholars in the cancer field. I was so happy when our leaders decided in 1982 to bring AACR here to be with me in Philadelphia, rather than to a lesser city which is not as rich in scientific and medical science.
As a result of our being here, we have been able to expose the special aspects of Philadelphia to the national and international cancer community by bringing scientists from all over the world here to our scientific meetings, and they in turn bring the message of this wonderful city back to their own institutions and home cities.
When I became CEO, we had a staff of only about 15, and now we have grown to 175, with plans to grow the staff to 250 in the not-too-distant future. I suspect that the AACR is one of the few organizations or companies recruiting new staff and not downsizing in this economic downturn.
The AACR is very proud that Congress has voted to name May, the month of AACR's inception in 1907, as National Cancer Research Month as this allows us to put the spotlight on the importance of cancer research to public health.
Cancer research saves lives! Because of the efforts of cancer researchers, we now have 12 million cancer survivors in the United States, a number that will increase over time because of groundbreaking laboratory and clinical research. Much has been accomplished, but there is still much more work to be done.
Cancer will claim over 570,000 lives in the United States alone this year — one every minute of every day — and 8 million people worldwide. As President Obama has stated, we must put more emphasis on curing this disease that touches all of us and that sadly strikes one out of every three women and one out of every two men.
You may have noticed the TV and radio ads about cancer research this month, as well as the airport dioramas and the banners around the city. The AACR intends to continue to draw the public's attention to the importance of rallying around this cause that affects so many. Further, we hope that it will be possible to educate the young in our fair city about good lifestyle habits that have the potential to prevent cancer.
Mayor Nutter, I would like to again express my profound thanks to you personally for being so supportive of the AACR and for being our city's great leader. We are very proud to call you our mayor and will do all we can to further your goals and objectives.
Thank you so much for the generosity of your time and your continued interest in our work.