Oklahomans urged to sign up for national cancer research project

Now, for the first time, Oklahoma will be included in the organization's cancer prevention study as a state with on-site enrollment, said Lesa Foster, the Oklahoma regional vice president of the American Cancer Society.

Foster said she signed up to participate in the study three years ago in Dallas and wanted other Oklahomans to have the same opportunity.

“It's so meaningful to me,” Foster said. “I have a lot of cancer history in my family, and it feels like you're really able to do something to give back. I know how important it is to me, and I just wanted to bring that opportunity to the state of Oklahoma.”

The American Cancer Society needs 1,120 Oklahoma residents to sign up to participate in the study.

Men and women who are between 30 and 65 years old and have never been diagnosed with cancer can enroll in the study. The study will follow participants for at least 20 years.

The goal of the study is to collect data that will help researchers have a better understanding of how a person's genetics, environment and lifestyle affect whether that person develops cancer.