The world of cancer research is a Byzantine one; complex and seemingly never-ending. One thing never changes, though – cancer researchers need help. They need the public to come forward and participate in research programs. One such program, a very important one, will be in St. Albert over the next few days and needs area residents to help.
The Tomorrow Project is, according to Alberta Health Services, the largest research study ever undertaken in Alberta. AHS says its primary goal is to discover more about what causes cancer, so that it may be prevented in the future. Information provided by people who join the Tomorrow Project may also be used to learn more about other long-term health conditions. AHS is seeking 50,000 Albertans between the ages of 35-69, who have never had cancer to join this long-term study.
The Tomorrow Project uses a mobile centre to gather simple tissue samples such as blood from volunteers, and even a saliva sample can be given if blood donation is too intimidating.
Cancer is very common in Alberta. A quarter of Albertans will be diagnosed with it, and of those, half will die.
The Tomorrow Project will be set up at the St. Albert Inn and Suites, 156 St. Albert Trail, until the end of Aug. 1. Please call 1-877-919-9292.
A resident of this area could be carrying the secret to beating cancer and could make tomorrow cancer-free for everyone.
Dog-gone posters
Who would have thought a wayward Mexican dog could cause so much consternation? More accurately, it's the dog's disappearance that's doing it.
A week ago the Gazette ran two stories about Sydney, the missing whippet-cross that came to St. Albert as part of a rescue operation in Mexico. Ever since the stories ran, the debate has been intense about Sydney's friends and family trying to find her through an extensive poster campaign in a city neighbourhood.
After a neighbour complained about the mass of "wanted" posters on public property, City of St. Albert staff informed Sydney's family they were not allowed to put the posters up and had to remove them.
Every municipality in Canada has some sort of litter bylaw, and with good reason. Even for the very worthy goal of finding this poor lost dog, the community can't pay the price of dozens or hundreds of pieces of litter blowing around as a result.
Tolerance is the watchword, however. The city told the Gazette recently that bylaw officers don't tend to do too much enforcement about such things unless someone in the community complains. Anyone with pets knows the emotional upheaval in the home when Rusty is missing – and probably includes lots of people at city hall. The mistake that Sydney's friends and family made was to take a poster or two and turn them into an assembly line.
Let's keep the "poster policy" status quo. Like most things done in moderation, it causes no harm.
