10 June 2008
Experts to focus on evidence and action around cancer prevention, diet and physical activity
Event: Wednesday June 11th, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh
International experts on cancer prevention and its links to diet and physical activity will gather in Scotland tomorrow (Wednesday June 11th) to debate action this country can take.
The Scottish Cancer Foundation is hosting the `Cancer Prevention- the evidence and the action: food, nutrition and physical activity’ workshop at the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh.
It will be attended by international experts and observers from the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) panel who reviewed the Evidence on Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Diet. Among the speakers is Dr Walter Willett, Chairman of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health, and the most cited nutritionist internationally.
"This meeting will set the scene for why Scotland needs to take cancer prevention seriously and consider promising, and challenging, routes for achieving changes in diet and physical activity," said Professor Annie Anderson, of the Centre for Public Health Nutrition Research at the University of Dundee and a director of the Scottish Cancer Foundation.
"Current health education efforts around diet, obesity and physical activity with respect to cancer are lost in the ‘noise’ of general approaches to improve health and there is a need to deliver a strong cancer prevention message. Taking a cancer prevention approach should be a fundamental and visible part of all cancer control plans."
"Efforts to change diet in Scotland over the last two decades have not achieved the desired targets and debate is now needed on how to maximise efforts including learning from tobacco control measures."
"This workshop will help inform a key part of that debate."
The workshop will be attended by a number of MSPs and key policymakers in Scotland.
The objectives of the meeting are to:
- examine the evidence related to food, nutrition and physical activity and the prevention of cancer.
- explore evidence based approaches to changing dietary behaviour.
- consider the consequences of a failure to change diet and activity trends.
- discuss effective ways by which cancer risk reduction can become a key part of personal and public health agendas.
NOTES TO EDITORS
- The Scottish Cancer Foundation is a charity, established by and run by researchers. It aims to promote the reduction of deaths from cancer in Scotland by encouraging research into the causes, prevention and treatment of cancer and by advancing public knowledge and awareness of the causes of cancer and potential methods of prevention. As a small charity, independent of government and industry, it uses its limited resources to bring together experts in various aspects of cancer to provide unbiased and objective assessments of the problem in Scotland and to identify further ways of tackling it.
- Event programme:
- 09.30 - 10.00 : Tea and coffee on arrival (Chairman: Dr Gordon Paterson)
- 10.00 - 10.05 : Welcome from the The Scottish Cancer Foundation (Professor John Wyke)
- 10.05 - 10.15 : Cancer prevention, early detection and avoiding the patient journey (Professor Bob Steele, University of Dundee)
Presentations
- 10-15 - 10.45 : Food, nutrition and physical activity, The evidence for action (Professor Elio Riboli, Imperial College, London)
- 10.45 - 11.00 : Questions and Discussion
- 11.00 - 11.45 : Action approaches: the role of governments and civil society (Professor Philip James, International Obesity Task Force, London)
- 11.45 - 12.00 : Questions and Discussion
- 12.00 - 12.20 : Action approaches: the role of the individual (Professor Annie Anderson, University of Dundee)
- 12.20 - 12.30 : Comments - (Professor Harry Burns, Chief Medical Officer)
- 12.30 - 13.30 : Lunch
- 13.30 - 14.15 : Inaction: the likely consequences (Professor Walter Willett, Harvard School of Public Health)
- 14.15 - 14.30 : Questions and Discussion
- 14.30 - 15.25 : Cancer Prevention in Scotland - evidence into action
- Round Table Discussion
- What can the Scottish Government do?
- What can the NHS do?
- What is the role of NGO’s?
- How can individuals be supported?
- 15.25 - 15.30 : Final words
For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head, Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate
Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384910
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk
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