AUGUSTA – For the first time in decades, cancer has outpaced heart disease as the leading cause of death in Maine. That news, based on 2002 state health data, served as the springboard Thursday for the release of a five-year state plan for combating cancer.

Also on Thursday, the American Cancer Society rolled out a new national campaign to build public awareness of the relationship between being overweight and the risk of developing certain types of cancer.

Maine’s cancer death rates are the highest in New England and are higher than the national average. This year, health officials estimate 7,900 Mainers will be diagnosed with some form of cancer, and more than 3,000 will die of cancer-related conditions. That translates to an average of 22 cancer diagnoses and nine deaths each day. As in the rest of the nation, lung cancer causes the most Maine deaths, followed by colorectal cancer, breast cancer and prostate cancer.

Speaking at a State House press conference Thursday, Kip DeSerres of the Maine chapter of the American Cancer Society said the new, 115-page Maine Comprehensive Cancer Control Plan serves as a blueprint for what can and should be done at the state and local level to improve the prevention, detection, control and care of cancer cases in Maine.

Though the cause of many cancers remains a mystery, DeSerres said, more than half of all cases could be prevented by practicing healthful lifestyle choices. These include:

. Increasing physical activity.

. Controlling weight.

. Eliminating use of tobacco products.

. Eating a balanced diet.

. Limiting exposure to sun.

. Practicing safe sex. (Some kinds of cervical cancers are known to be caused by the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus and can be prevented by using a condom during intercourse.)

Beyond adopting these personal behaviors, people need to understand and ask their health care providers for the routine screenings that are recommended to detect, and in some cases prevent, cancers of the breast, colon and prostate, DeSerres said. In addition, he said, people with cancer deserve access to the highest quality medical care as well as support groups, physical and occupational therapy, transportation services and in-home care. All these factors increase cancer survival rates and quality of life, he said.

The state’s new cancer plan lays out measurable goals and strategies for increasing Mainers’ healthful lifestyle choices, decreasing smoking and other harmful behaviors, improving routine screening rates, and improving physicians’ ability to provide high-quality cancer treatment and pain management. It also establishes the need to increase the number of cancer patients who take advantage of support services such as hospice care and to improve data collection and evaluation.

Brunswick physician Jay Bosco noted that many people may forgo recommended diagnostic screenings if they have no insurance or other way to pay for them. While Maine does partner with the federal government to offer free or reduced-rate screenings for breast and cervical cancer, no such assistance is available now for routine prostate screening or colonoscopies, he said.

Bosco said efforts are under way to connect low-income Mainers with medical providers who are willing to provide the services inexpensively, but added that public demand is critical to raising support for such a program.

An official at the Maine Office of Data, Research and Vital Statistics said Thursday that cause-of-death records have been kept in Maine since 1892. Since at least the 1970s, she said, heart disease has been the state’s leading cause of death. That changed in 2002, when 3,202 cancer deaths were reported and only 3,164 deaths related to heart disease. The trend has continued in 2003 and 2004, the official said.

The five-year cancer plan released by the Maine Cancer Consortium on Thursday updates an earlier version developed in 2001. The consortium is a group of about 130 organizations, public and private, dedicated to controlling cancer in Maine. The new plan may be viewed online at www.mainecancerconsortium.org

Also on Thursday, the American Cancer Society unveiled its “Great American Eat Right Challenge” to help citizens understand the link between being overweight and the risk of developing cancer. Breast and colorectal cancers are especially associated with being overweight, according to the ACS. The health organization recommends a balanced diet low in sugars and saturated fats, careful portion control and regular exercise as keys to reducing weight and cancer risk. For more information, including recipes, visit www.cancer.org/eatright.

Top five foods Americans can’t resist

WOMEN

1. Chocolate

2. Baked goods (tie for second)

2. Pizza-pasta-Italian

(tie for second)

4. Seafood-shellfish

5. Ice cream (tie for fifth)

5. Ethnic foods (tie for fifth)

MEN

1. Pizza-pasta-Italian

2. Meat-beef-burgers

3. Chocolate

4. Seafood-shellfish

5. Ethnic foods

SOURCE: American Cancer Society