1976 Stanford psychiatrist David Spiegel, MD, begins to look at the effects of support groups for women with metastatic breast cancer. NCI commissions the National Research Council to review data linking diet and cancer. Later that year, E. Donnall Thomas, MD, pioneers the technique of bone marrow transplant to treat cancer. These findings initiate a new path of research on the health effects of psychosocial support. Research finds that young children recognize Joe Camel as easily as Mickey Mouse, indicating that the character targets an audience under the legal smoking age.
Gene therapy is directed against cancer.
NIH initiates the Human Genome Project to identify the function and location of each of the body's estimated 50,000-100,000 genes. 1993 Research reveals that a third of cancer deaths are linked to diet and that regular exercise offers protection from some forms of cancer. Later that year, the Environmental Protection Agency reports that second-hand smoke results in more than 3,000 deaths a year. 1997 More than 7 million living Americans have a history of cancer. Organizations such as NCI's Office of Cancer Survivorship and the National Coalition for Cancer Survivors are now promoting clinical research on cancer survival.