03 FEBRUARY 2016

Fredericton – David Coon, MLA for Fredericton South and Leader of the Green Party of New Brunswick issued the following statement in recognition of World Cancer Day on Thursday, February 4.

“Most cancers are caused by factors such as the consumption of tobacco and alcohol, diet, certain types of infections, radiation, and environmental exposure to different types of chemicals in the environment. We need to put our efforts to prevent cancer on the same scale as the efforts to cure cancers.

We need a more comprehensive cancer prevention strategy in New Brunswick, that targets all the risk factors including alcohol abuse, workplace health, carcinogens in the environment and consumer products, air quality, pesticide use and water quality. An effective strategy needs to be community specific to deal with particular determinants of cancer in local communities.

It’s time we end the intentional release of probable carcinogens into our environment, such as glyphosate, which is sprayed over vast areas of our Crown lands at public expense. We need a harm prevention strategy for alcohol abuse which has been linked to breast cancer. We need a province-wide effort to identify radon gas in homes which can cause lung cancer, and ensure remedial measures are taken.

Cancer can be prevented. Dramatic progress has been made to prevent cancer from tobacco use and infections in New Brunswick. We need to build on these successes and implement a comprehensive cancer prevention strategy to better safeguard the health of New Brunswickers.