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The American Cancer Society (ACS) has been the best single source of information on questionable cancer methods for many years. Beginning in 1915, the ACS gathered information on quackery by what came to be called the Ad Hoc Committee on Quackery. In 1954, the name was changed to the Committee on New and Unproven Methods of Treatment. In 1970, the word "treatment" was replaced with "management" to include dubious methods of diagnosis and prevention: The Committee on Unproven Methods of Cancer Management. In 1989, the name was changed to the Committee on Questionable Methods of Cancer Management in order to differentiate between unproven methods that were not seen as promising and experimental methods that were moving through the scientific system. In 1995, the name was changed again to the Subcommittee on Alternative and Complementary Methods of Cancer Management. Through all of these name changes, the work of the committee has remained the same--to examine unapproved, unpromising methods of cancer management and to warn patients not to use them.




