CCR Grand Rounds November 21: Dr. Donald P. Bottaro, Senior Scientist, Urologic Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, NCI. "The Role of Hepatocyte Growth Factor Signaling in Renal Cancer." November 28: Dr. Kenneth W. Kinzler, Professor of Oncology, The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. "Cancer Genomes: Discovery and Applications." CCR Grand Rounds are held 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. at the NIH campus in Bethesda, Md., in the Clinical Center's Lipsett Amphitheater.

President's Cancer Panel Examines Cancer Risk
The President's Cancer Panel is holding a series of meetings on "Promoting Healthy Lifestyles to Reduce the Risk of Cancer." The second meeting in the series was held October 23 in Lexington, Ky. Panelists presented testimony on the effect of tobacco and environmental tobacco smoke on cancer risk and on effective programs and policies to combat the problem throughout the United States.

The next meeting will take place on December 5 in Portland, Ore., where the Panel will hear testimony on how obesity, physical activity, and nutrition affect cancer risk.

Meetings of the President's Cancer Panel are free, open to the public, and require no registration. More information is available online about the Panel and these meetings at http://pcp.cancer.gov.

Great American Smokeout Promotes Smoking Cessation
On November 16, the American Cancer Society's Great American Smokeout will challenge people to quit smoking and raise awareness about different methods of smoking cessation. For more than 30 years, the Smokeout has been a signature national event encouraging individuals to give up cigarettes. Events are held across the country on the third Thursday of November, including rallies, parades, stunts, quitting information, and "cold turkey" menu items in schools, workplaces, main streets, and legislative halls.

An estimated 46 million adults in the United States currently smoke, and about half will die prematurely from smoking. Cigarette smoking causes 87 percent of lung cancer deaths. Information on the Smokeout is available at http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/ped_10_4.asp. Information about quitting smoking is available at www.smokefree.gov.

NCI Scientists Recognized for HPV Vaccine Development
On November 16, Drs. Douglas Lowy and John Schiller of the Laboratory of Cellular Oncology in NCI's Center for Cancer Research will receive the David Workman Memorial Award from the Samuel Waxman Cancer Research Foundation of Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City. The scientists are being honored for their research, which resulted in the clinical development of a vaccine for human papillomavirus (HPV). The David Workman Memorial Award recognizes the application of science for the development of a new treatment for a poorly treatable form of cancer.

Pancreatic Cancer Awareness in November
On September 25, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution designating November as Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month. Information on pancreatic cancer can be found at http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/pancreatic.