Stanton Glantz
The American Cancer Society recently has named Stanton Glantz, PhD, professor of medicine and director of the UCSF Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, as the lead recipient of the 2009 Luther L. Terry Awards for Exemplary Leadership in Tobacco Control.
The award — named after the late Surgeon General Luther L. Terry, MD, who led the landmark 1964 Surgeon General’s report connecting tobacco use to lung cancer and other illnesses — is considered the Nobel Prize of tobacco control. It recognizes worldwide tobacco control achievement.
The American Cancer Society recognizes Glantz as one of the world’s outstanding tobacco control advocates and researchers, who has pushed the field of tobacco control in new directions. Glantz is being recognized for his innovative and often unconventional ideas.
“Stan is a profile in courage of the deeply held belief that we, as humans, owe it to each other to keep the air we breathe free of tobacco smoke,” said Haile Debas, MD, executive director of UCSF Global Health Sciences. “His dedication, perseverance and indefatigable quest for data and truth about the tobacco industry research showing the harmful effects of tobacco and the addicting properties of nicotine have been vital. We all owe him a debt of gratitude, and I am delighted about this important award he is receiving.”
Award-Winning Scholar
Glantz, who has won many awards for his efforts to expose the truth about tobacco and the companies that profit from its deadly products, is pleased about this latest recognition. “It’s an amazing honor to get this award that shows clear international recognition of the importance of grassroots organizing for public health,” said Glantz. “I also sincerely thank all the individuals and organizations that have been willing to work with me over the years, particularly on my more unconventional ideas. It’s only through their support that we’ve made the progress we have that has led to this wonderful award.”
Glantz is the author of six books and more than 250 scientific papers. Key publications include the first major review identifying involuntary smoking as a cause of heart disease and the landmark July 19, 1995, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, demonstrating that the tobacco industry had known for decades that nicotine was addictive and that smoking caused cancer.
In 1994, Glantz received a box anonymously that contained millions of pages of tobacco industry documents. He has played a vital role in making these documents available to tobacco control and public health researchers by establishing the UCSF Legacy Tobacco Documents Library.
In recent years, Glantz has led efforts to encourage the Hollywood film industry to assign an “R” rating to films that contain smoking and to certify that it is not receiving payoffs from the tobacco industry for tobacco placement. The National Cancer Institute has concluded, based on studies from around the world, that on-screen smoking causes children to smoke.
Elected to the Institute of Medicine in 2005, Glantz has received numerous honors and awards, including the American Legacy Foundation Distinguished Professorship in Tobacco Control, the Common Cause Public Service Achievement Award, the American Public Health Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award and the UCSF Chancellor’s Award for Public Service. He joined the UCSF faculty in 1977.
Heading for Mumbai, India
The award comes at a time when the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) has been ratified by 161 countries, including many whose economies depend in part on tobacco. The FCTC calls for a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.
Glantz will receive the award at the 14th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health in Mumbai, India, on March 11, 2009.
For several days in November, Mumbai was the site of terrorist attacks that targeted several hotels popular with Americans.
Following the attacks in Mumbai, the UCSF Office of Risk Management and Insurance Services immediately acted to confirm the safety of all UCSF employees in India during the time of the attacks. “As it turned out, no one was in harm’s way and all UCSF faculty have either returned or will return shortly,” Bruce G. Flynn, director of Risk Management and Insurance Services, said shortly after the attacks.
UCSF has taken a proactive role in ensuring the safety of its employees working abroad. Global Health Sciences and Risk Management and Insurance Services have been partnering for more than two years to map out safety strategies that include travel information, support and travel insurance for UCSF faculty, staff, students and trainees.
“The insurance includes coverage for extraction from countries where dangerous situations evolve,” said Flynn. “We have also implemented a global alert system, which tells us when we have UCSF people in places where civil unrest and terrorism pose a threat.”
Several members of the UC community are planning on presenting at the conference on tobacco. The conference website provides assurance that the event, scheduled at the National Center for Performing Arts, is taking increased precautions to ensure the safety of its attendees.
