ALF, Bayer collaborate to elevate liver cancer awareness

October is Liver Cancer Awareness Month, and Bayer and the American Liver Foundation announced the third consecutive year of a shared initiative to draw attention to the disease, according to a press release.

“Diagnosing liver cancer early is key, as a patient’s chance of survival nearly doubles if the disease is caught early,” Joseph Germino, MD, PhD, Bayer’s vice president for medical affairs in oncology, said in the press release.

The coordinated campaign — titled “Are You At Risk?” — will use billboards and banners to draw attention to the importance of screening at-risk populations, hepatocellular carcinoma’s risk factors, warning signs and significance of early detection. The signage will also steer the public toward the American Liver Foundation’s education, research, advocacy, helpline and other services. The billboards and banners will be visible in Chicago, San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles and other large U.S. cities, according to the release.

The campaign has been “incredibly effective,” according to Thomas F. Nealon, III, the American Liver Foundation’s chief executive officer.

“Last year, one of our helpline specialists received a call from someone who had seen our ‘Are You At Risk?’ ads each day going to work,” Nealon said in the press release. “This person had been living with the hepatitis C virus for several years, but did not know until seeing these ads that hepatitis is a risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common type of primary liver cancer.”

An estimated 27,000 patients with liver cancer will die, and nearly another 40,000 liver cancer cases will be diagnosed in 2016, according to Bayer.

“We are looking toward a future where liver cancer patients are even better informed and have access to solutions across all stages of disease,” Germino said in the press release. – by Janel Miller

Disclosure: Nealon is employed by the American Liver Foundation. Germino is employed by Bayer.