ASCO recently held a work group meeting with 18 organizations that focused on addressing obesity through multidisciplinary collaboration. The purpose of the meeting was to review current challenges in addressing obesity within the health-care provider communities and identify potential opportunities where the organizations can come together to address this global problem.
A white paper and recommendation report will be developed, which will guide all participating organizations in moving forward collaboratively to achieve the desired goals. The organizations participating in the work group are:
Obesity is a risk factor for a variety of chronic conditions including diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, stroke, heart disease, and arthritis—as well as certain cancers. However, public awareness of the relationship between obesity and cancer is limited—a 2013 survey1 showed only 7% of Americans were aware of the link between obesity and increased cancer risk.
ASCO is fully committed to addressing this issue and sees the convening of this work group as the next phase of a public campaign. The work group identified opportunities in four areas—research; public education and activation; provider education and training; and policy and advocacy—for addressing obesity through multidisciplinary collaboration. ■
Reference
1. Neergard L, Agiesta J: Poll: Few Americans Know All the Risks of Obesity. Associated Press–NORC Center for Public Affairs Research; January 7, 2013. Available at http://www.apnorc.org/news-media/Pages/News+Media/poll-few-americans-know-all-the-risks-of-obesity.aspx.
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