PMID: 26321702Sep 1, 2015Paper

Thoughts on Cancer Education in Primary Schools

Gan to kagaku ryoho. Cancer & chemotherapy
Tomoyuki Kitagawa

Abstract

Cancer prevention is increasingly important in an aging society such as Japan, both in terms of the achievement of national healthy-life elongation and the reduction of the social and economic burden of medical care. Prevention is of principal importance for achieving these purposes. Cancer is considerably preventable by following a healthy lifestyle, including refraining from smoking, having regular health examinations, and receiving vaccines. With respect to lifestyle education, elementary school children are expected to be the most effective target population. However, a governmental committee comprised largely of educational specialists recently recommended that comprehensive cancer education begin in middle high school, because cancer prevention is a topic too difficult for young children to understand and implement. According to the committee 's report, the specialists set lofty aims for cancer education, including empowerment of a living will, promotion of thinking about life and death, and demonstrations of sympathy toward individuals who are weak or have disease. These aims are admirable. However, if these lofty aims prevent the practice of cancer education in elementary schools, then we should rethink the purpose in r...Continue Reading

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