American Cancer Sociiety Position on PCa Screening

Dear William,

Recently there's been some media attention about the American Cancer Society
and our views on cancer screening that may have been confusing to some. We
wanted to be sure that as a valued supporter, you heard directly from us
about where we stand on this topic.

The bottom line? We know that screening saves lives and creates more
birthdays. We encourage women at average risk to get mammograms starting at
age 40, to get Pap tests as soon as they are sexually active or no later
than age 21, and both men and women at average risk to get screened for
colon cancer starting at age 50. You can find our complete screening
guidelines
<http://acs.r.delivery.net/r?2.1.3LO.2iH.11V%2aZg.C2WIqK..N.Cre8.2dU.bW89MQ%
5f%5fCLFMFLK0> here.

Scientific studies prove these tests' importance - and in fact, we know that
300 more birthdays are being celebrated each and every day thanks in part to
cancer screenings.

Yet we have long acknowledged that cancer screening isn't perfect. Sometimes
cancers get overlooked. Sometimes cancers get misdiagnosed. Sometimes
aggressive cancers can appear even after a clear screening test. It is
important to acknowledge these limitations, understand them, discuss them
with your doctor, and decide what is right for you.

We are committed to offering you the very best and latest information on all
issues related to cancer so that you can do your part to stay well. We are
constantly evaluating our screening guidelines based on current science, and
we may from time to time change our views and recommendations. There are
some cancers for which we don't currently recommend screening, such as
prostate cancer, because the benefits are unclear or unproven. We continue
to aggressively search for new and more effective ways to detect, prevent,
and treat these and all types of cancer.

Now that you know the facts, we hope you will help save even more lives by
passing this email on to all your friends and loved ones. Each life we touch
is another birthday we can help save.

Thanks for everything you do,

John R. Seffrin, PhD
Chief Executive Officer
American Cancer Society