State Announces Five-Year Plan to Help People Fight Cancer

The state's five-year plan for fighting cancer targets smoking, poor nutrition and obesity to limit the disease that is now diagnosed in more than 100,000 New Yorkers annually while killing about 35,000.

Noting the nearly 1 million cancer survivors among the state's 19 million people, the plan also calls for tracking their quality-of-life outcomes and ensuring appropriate follow-up care, including ongoing screenings.

The report from a match of providers and organizations, including the State Health Department and the American Cancer Society, lists gradual goals for early detection, treatment, public outreach, workforce training and palliative care for those who are terminally ill.

The chief strategy for better early detection is establishing the 2010 federal law intended to help extend health coverage to 2.7 million uninsured New Yorkers. Starting in 2014, the New York Health Benefit Exchange, a federally required and subsidized marketplace for buyers, is expected enroll about 1.1 million uninsured.