The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a statement regarding the safety of aspartame, an artificial sweetener found in Diet Coke and other sugar-free foods and drinks. The WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) categorized aspartame as a Group 2B carcinogen, based on limited evidence for cancer in humans. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not agree and believes that aspartame is safe to consume in high amounts. Dr. Francesco Branca, director of the department of nutrition and food safety at WHO, has said that science is continuously expanding to assess the possible initiating or facilitating factors of cancer.