IARC 2016

Dr Franceschi speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about cancer as a result of infectious pathogens. With differing rates across populations due to access to healthcare, immunocompromised status and vaccination uptake, viral and bacterial infections are becoming increasingly known as a cancer driver. Dr Franceschi sets out the need for wider awareness and access to vaccinations, such as subsidising the cost of the HPV vaccine for young women across the world.

Dr Chanock speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about increased risk of cancer passed down through heritable genetic mutations. Weighing genomics against the influence of environmental factors, Dr Chanock discusses a patients' polygenic risk score. Accurate scoring and stratification may not only reflect patient susceptibility to disease, but also predict which treatments would be best tolerated and overall wellbeing.

Prof Sir Marmot speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about the challenges facing healthcare as a result of systematic inequality on a national and international scale. He discusses the impact on life expectancy between and within countries depending on lifestyle and access to care, and the importance of stemming health issues early in life with upstream interventions for public and practitioners. Prof Sir Marmot sets out five goals in practice for medical professionals: Sharing of education Awareness of patients in broader perspectives Engagement with healthcare systems as employers Wider partnership with service providers Advocacy for changes

Prof Peto speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about the means by which he believes cancer diagnoses can be halved. He outlines the necessary steps of tackling the social and environmental causes of cancer, specifically smoking and infectious diseases. Looking at global cancer incidences, Prof Peto highlights changing attitudes to anti-smoking and vaccination campaigns, new treatment or detection methods, and the management of cancer in developing economies.

Prof Beral speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about prevalence and prevention of cancer affecting women. With specific attention to breast cancer, she discusses the influence of child-bearing patterns, contraceptive pills and hormone replacement therapy on disease rates across the world.

Dr Eils speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about the volume of data produced by genomic sequencing on a personal and industrial level, and how to translate this into medically actionable information. Druggable mutations are drivers behind many tumours, and Dr Eils details how determining the root of a patient's disease is revolutionising personalised cancer care.

Dr Vineis speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about the exposome, changes in patient biology as a result of damage acquired through environment or behaviour rather than a transcriptional mutation. He describes the efforts to investigate the impact of dietary, contamination and air pollution on global cancer incidence, given that an estimated 50% of cancers may be preventable.

Dr van Hemelrijck speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about the conflicting results of metformin to treat prostate cancer. Metformin, a widely available diabetes treatment, is variably associated with slowing or aggravating cancer, which may be due to the apparent protection from cancer associated with diabetes. In a new trial, Dr van Hemelrijck aims to understand the mechanisms linking metformin, cancer and longevity with pre-surgical and post-operative sample analysis.

Prof Blackburn speaks to ecancertv at IARC 2016 about the shortening of telomeres, its genetic and non-genetic influences and the possible tumourigenic outcomes. She outlines molecular and behavioural causes for altered telomere degeneration, including chronic stress, diet, and how these predictably influence overall mortality. Prof Blackburn notes that any purported telomere-preserving or extending medicines do not extend survival in a straightforward fashion, but in fact increase the chances of developing cancer.

Dr Denny speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about access to cancer care in Africa. Given the prevalence of infectious diseases associated with tumourigenesis, such as hepatitis, HIV and Helicobacter pylori, Dr Denny discusses preventative measures currently available, including the issues of cost and demand. She discusses how linking HPV DNA in patient samples to cervical cancer using point-of-care analysis is changing cancer screening, and the need for greater investment in healthcare.

Dr Colditz speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about the social and legislative surroundings of modern strategies in cancer prevention. Across smoking, diet and exercise, he states the need for open communication between different organisations, and a goal of reaching a consensus agreement for simple, smart health choices for all.

Dr Smith speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 about cancer causes and causality. Addressing public perceptions of luck as a determining factor for developing cancer in the lifetime, he notes the interrelatedness of confounding factors including diet and lifestyle, which may in turn be further enhanced by genetic predispositions.

Dr Clifford speaks with ecancertv at IARC 2016 with short-to-medium term results of HPV vaccinations across Bhutan and Rwanda to reduce virus transmission, with further surveillance required to monitor cervical cancer incidence. He notes that distribution of the vaccination program through schools had wider uptake than distribution in the community. Dr Clifford also explains further investigation into pre-vaccination levels of infection among young women, and the potential impacts of HIV infection in this group.

Dr Wild talks to ecancertv's Prof Gordon McVie at IARC 2016 about the importance of IARC's 50th anniversary and the conference. He explains how IARC offers a hub for people within health to network and work together. In particular, he speaks of the need to leave a legacy behind after the event, in the form of action in the developing world. Of particular importance is prevention, he says. For example, a third of cancers in Sub-Saharan Africa are caused by preventable infections.

Dr Gavin talks to ecancertv at IARC 2016 about prostate cancer screening with particular reference to Ireland. By comparing the North and South of Ireland, with their different health systems and screening policies but similar populations, the researchers found that greater screening in the South arguably leads to overtreatment and the health issues associated with it.