Latest local news, weather, high school sports in the Rio Grande Valley

It is a way to prevent cancer from striking love one’s in the future.

"This is our way to lessen the burden in generation to come,” Tejada said. “We hope to find a cure for cancer...this is what we can do now."
           
But it is going to take an army of people, ready to stand up and fight this disease that kills thousands each year.            

"The Rio Grande Valley is an area where we're seeing a high incident of cancer,” Tejada explained.. “That is why we're a target to be studied. We want to find out why? And how we can find treatments for that."
           
Melisa Tejada, community manager of health initiatives for the American Cancer Society, told Action 4 News that the Hispanic population tends to see a higher number of people with cancer than any other race.      
           
She said by conducting these studies in the Rio Grande Valley where the majority of people are Hispanic—they are hoping to figure out why. 

"We're rallying the troops to make that difference in generations to come."
           
The study won’t take all that long….all a person had to do is complete a question. It is only 30 questions and can be done at home or online.
           
Over the next 20 to 30 years the subject will receive a questionnaire in the mail every two years to update the study.

"There's not going to be any constant calling or emailing...nothing like that."

Just thirty minutes of a person’s time, Tejada said, over the next 20 to 30 years could make all the difference in the future.