Three members of NCC’s team headed out to communities in northern Nevada in March to connect with partners, share resources, and learn more about barriers that people living in rural communities face regarding healthcare. They also spent a day at the annual Elko Health and Fitness Fair—an event NCC loves to attend.

The trio—Prevention and Early Detection Programs Manager Lily Helzer, Outreach Coordinator Valerie Martinez, and Community Engagement Manager Sarah Grocki—returned to Reno energized and with a lot to share.

Students in rural communities across northern Nevada this month got an extra dose of sunshine—in the form of Sun Smart Schools. The students attended assemblies and classroom presentations on the sun safety and skin cancer prevention program from trained Nevada Cancer Coalition staff.

Students across all grade levels, from kindergarten through high school, participated in the presentations tailored to provide age-appropriate information. NCC’s Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Programs Manager, Lily Helzer, said teaching Nevada youth about sun safety is a priority.

Head and neck cancers are a category of cancers that can form in the oral cavity, throat, voice box, salivary glands, paranasal sinuses and nasal cavity. They usually begin in the squamous cells that line the head and neck mucosal surfaces.

About 4% of cancers diagnosed in the U.S. are head and neck cancers, and incidence is increasing. More than 70,000 people will be diagnosed this year.

Nevada's Central Cancer Registry keeps data on cancer cases across the state and has provided data that we've formatted into charts to help you quickly digest the information.

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The Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC), through a grant from the Bristol Myers Squibb Foundation, has developed an Optimal Care Coordination Model for improving care coordination for patients with lung cancer covered by Medicaid. The Model provides a framework for improving access and quality across the entire continuum of care for patients on Medicaid with lung cancer. The ACCC Model builds upon the Multidisciplinary Care Assessment Tool created through the National Cancer Institute Community Cancer Centers Program (NCCCP).

Registration is now open for NCC's first ever Evidence Academy. This free half-day session will engage partners and community members to learn about the efficacy of peer mentoring to increase cancer screening. The event is Monday, April 15 from 8 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

The event features speakers from University of Nevada, Reno's Larson Institute on the evidence behind peer mentoring for cancer screening, a presentation by B&A Entertainment on their peer and faith-based mentoring for breast cancer screening, and a workshop to brainstorm ideas to implement in northern Nevada.

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

Earlier this year the American Cancer Society (ACS) released alarming news: colorectal cancer is now the leading cause of cancer death among men under 50, and the second for women under 50. Incidence of this cancer is also increasing among those 55 or younger, underscoring the importance of on-time and consistent cancer screening.