The mission of cancer research – to find better and more effective ways to treat or prevent cancer – begins with a better understanding of the disease. Knowing how a cancer begins and how it grows is an important first step toward fighting it and has led to remarkable advances in oncology.

Throughout our lives, most of us will undergo a variety of medical tests to help identify and treat various ailments and diseases. These exams will probably include a pathology test, which is used to study the cause and progression of a disease.

Dr. Rokitka is the newly appointed Director of the Young Adult Program and Oncofertility Program, and for years she has quietly helped many of our cancer survivors plan and finance the process of starting a family.

"There's a lot of evidence that for someone who's overweight, losing even a small amount — five pounds, 10 pounds — can reduce the chances that they'll be diagnosed with cancer."

As a Stage IV oral cancer survivor, I am very passionate about spreading awareness. Oral, head and neck cancers are profoundly different than other cancers in that they limit one’s ability to swallow, eat and talk.