American Cancer Society

History

The society was founded on May 22, 1913, by ten physicians and five businessmen in New York City under the name American Society for the Control of Cancer (ASCC); the current name was adopted in 1944. At its founding, mentioning the word cancer in public was considered inappropriate, and the disease was shrouded in fear, stigma, and denial. The ASCC made education its top priority, launching a nationwide information campaign to inform doctors, nurses, patients, and families about cancer and early detection.

In 1921, it commissioned the Eastern Film Corporation to produce a silent melodrama titled The Reward of Courage, encouraging viewers to get regular checkups. Articles were written for popular magazines and professional journals, and the ASCC began publishing its own monthly bulletin, Campaign Notes. The ASCC recruited physicians across the United States to help educate the public. In 1936, field representative Marjorie Illig suggested creating a network of volunteers to wage war on cancer; from 1935 to 1938 the number of people involved in cancer control in the US grew from 15,000 to 150,000, largely due to the Women's Field Army.

The sword symbol, adopted in 1928, was designed by George E. Durant of Brooklyn, New York; the two serpents forming the handle represent the scientific and medical focus, and the blade expresses the crusading spirit of the cancer control movement.

Activities and fund allocation

The ACS provides grants to researchers, including funding 53 Nobel Laureate researchers such as James D. Watson, Mario Capecchi, Oliver Smithies, Paul Berg, E. Donnall Thomas, and Walter Gilbert. It discovered the link between smoking and cancer and serves one million callers annually through its National Cancer Information Center. The organization runs public health advertising campaigns, organizes projects like the Great American Smokeout, and operates thrift stores to raise funds.

For fiscal year ending December 31, 2023, the ACS allocated 81% of its funds to program services: 52% for patient support, 22% for research, and 7% for advocacy; the remaining 19% went to supporting services (15% fundraising, 4% management). This meets the Better Business Bureau's Standard 8 requiring at least 65% of total expenses on program activities. In 2020, the ACS launched Gamers Vs Cancer, charity online streams with professional gaming live streamers.

Relay For Life, established in 1985 by Gordon Klatt, has become a global movement raising billions. Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, a series of 3- to 5-mile non-competitive walks, has grown into the nation's largest breast cancer movement.

Dietary advice

The ACS recommends a healthy dietary pattern similar to the Mediterranean diet, consisting mostly of plant-based foods high in dietary fibre, with fish and poultry, while limiting or avoiding red and processed meats to reduce cancer risk. It also advises limiting or avoiding sugar-sweetened beverages, highly processed foods, and refined grains. In its 2020 Diet and Physical Activity Guideline, the ACS stated that evidence that red and processed meats increase cancer risk has existed for decades.

Evaluations and controversies

In 1994, a study by Nye Lavalle & Associates published by The Chronicle of Philanthropy ranked the American Cancer Society as the tenth most popular charity in America, with 38% of Americans over age 12 choosing love or like a lot for the ACS. In 1995, the Arizona chapter was criticized for high overhead; economists James Bennett and Thomas DiLorenzo reported that the chapter used about 95% of donations for salaries and overhead, a 22-to-1 ratio of overhead to actual spending, and that its annual report inflated patient services spending by more than a factor of 10.

The ACS responded that the economists were working for a group funded by the tobacco industry. As of January 2012, the Better Business Bureau listed the ACS as an accredited charity meeting all its standards. For the 2009–2010 fiscal year, CEO John R. Seffrin received $2,401,112 in salary and compensation, the second highest among charity heads according to CharityWatch, including $1.5 million in a retention benefit; his compensation for fiscal year ending August 31, 2012, was $832,355.

As of November 2020, Charity Navigator gave the ACS a score of 80.88 (3-Star), with finance scored 73.13 (2-Star) and accountability 97.00 (4-Star). In January 2024, the ACS received a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator with an overall score of 99 out of 100: 99 for Accountability and Finance, 100 for Leadership and Adaptability, and 96 for Culture and Community.