Springtime conjures up visions of budding trees, green grass, sunny days, and blooming flowers, which reminds us that April is Daffodil Month. It is a time when the Canadian Cancer Society calls upon Canadians all across Canada to support it in the fight against Cancer, during it’s month-long campaign.

Many of us do not know that an estimated 153,100 new cases of cancer were diagnosed in 2006 and that an estimated 70,400 Canadians died from the disease in 2006. Cancer is also the leading cause of premature death in Canada with lung cancer remaining as the leading cause of cancer death in Canada. Based on current risks, more than one out of four Canadians will develop some form of cancer in their lifetimes, which makes it all the more important for all of us to do our part in increasing awareness against the disease and to support fundraising efforts.

During the month of April, thousands of volunteers from the Canadian Cancer Society have been selling daffodils, knocking on doors, and organizing special events throughout Canadian communities to raise funds to support the work of the Society. The Society’s springtime tradition has been in existence since 1948 and continually grows across our country.

Through its many activities, the Canadian Cancer Society focuses on five key areas to fight cancer including:

• Funding excellence in research on all types of cancer (last year the Society contributed over $52 million to fund leading-edge cancer research across Canada).
• Advocating for healthy public policy (last year the Society worked with our Government for the formation of the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, which will implement the Canadian Strategy for Cancer Control).
• Promoting strategies for reducing cancer risk (at least 50 per cent of cancers are associated with exposure to known risk factors and the Society works to create environments where Canadians exposure to these risk factors is minimized).
• Providing information about cancer (more than 660,000 people have been helped by the Society’s toll-free, bilingual Cancer Information Service since its national launch in 1996).
• Supporting people living with cancer (more than 1,200 CancerConnection volunteers helped 6, 200 people with cancer this past year).

I commend the many efforts made by the Canadian Cancer Society and its volunteers, not just during Daffodil month, but each day of the year. I also encourage you and your family to join the Government and the Society in continuing the fight to end this terrible disease, by supporting Daffodil Month in your community. For more information on Daffodil month, please visit the Canadian Cancer Society’s web site at: www.cancer.ca.