All of us have lost a loved one to cancer. Each of us mourns in our own way. Most of us do our best to go on with our lives. For philanthropist and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) Trustee Bruce Ratner, that wasn’t enough. After losing his brother to metastatic brain cancer, Ratner made it his personal mission to educate the public about the importance of early detection. Now, he’s released a book on the topic titled Early Detection: Catching Cancer When It’s Curable.
On June 7, Ratner sat down with CSHL Cancer Center Director David Tuveson to discuss the new book and related work happening in clinics across the country. Cancer detection and prevention have traditionally received less funding than research into treatments. However, Ratner noted a recent victory: “The American Cancer Society in November of 2023 said any person who has smoked more than 20 pack-years, of any age, should get screened.” (That is, any amount of cigarettes equal to one pack a day for 20 years—for example, two packs a day for 10 years.)
Press play to see more highlights of their fireside chat and find out what you can do to help spread awareness about the importance of early detection.