Closing Out November Awareness: Advocacy Resources for Pancreatic & Stomach Cancer Care
- CGA-IGC
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
Anuja Chitre, MS, CGC - CGA-IGC Communication Committee Member
The month of November has been an exciting time where we were able to raise awareness about pancreatic and stomach cancers and the indispensable role of caregivers!
We would like to close the month by highlighting several patient advocacy organizations related to these causes which provide invaluable resources to our patients and their caregivers. We encourage you to look into them and share them with your patients as appropriate!
Pancreatic Cancer Awareness:
With a vision to create a world in which all patients with pancreatic cancer can thrive, PanCAN provides various resources to help patients and their caregivers understand different aspects of pancreatic cancer diagnosis. Through the PanCAN Patient and Caregiver Services program, case managers provide free, personal one-to-one support and information on pancreatic cancer. Patients and caregivers can also learn more about support groups and/or connect with someone from the Survivor and Caregiver Network. Educational webinars are also available on their website covering wide range of topics from early detection to navigating nutrition in pancreatic cancer.
The National Pancreas Foundation is the only organization dedicated to patients who are suffering from all forms of pancreas disease – pancreatic cancer, acute pancreatitis, chronic pancreatitis, pediatric pancreatitis, FCS and others. It provides education for each of these pancreas disease and additional patient and caregiver resources including access to cookbooks to support those with pancreatic disease, a pediatric pancreatitis summer camp (Camp Hope), and finding a NPF center of excellence which is a premier healthcare facility that focuses on the multidisciplinary treatment of pancreas disease.
Stomach Cancer Awareness:
Debbie's Dream Foundation (DDF) seeks as its ultimate goal to make the cure for stomach cancer a reality. DDF provides a Patient Resource Education Program (PREP) that can help patients understand their diagnosis, staging, treatment options, clinical trials, side effect management, research, management of the disease, and more. As part of PREP, patients, families, and caregivers can also request a Mentor who can help to reassure them that they’re not alone in their fight. In addition to providing educational resources on stomach cancer and nutrition (including LIVE virtual cooking demonstrations), they provide engaging, bite sized video series on clinical trials to help patients navigate a cancer clinical trial journey. DDF also offers a helpline which provides emotional and practical support from oncology social workers and a monthly stomach cancer support group, led by licensed psychologist, for patients, caregivers, family members, and those who have lost a loved one.
No Stomach For Cancer (NSFC) strives to help advance awareness and education about stomach cancer, including Hereditary Diffuse Gastric Cancer (HDGC), and support research efforts for screening, early detection, treatment, and prevention of stomach cancer. The information provided on their website about Life Without a Stomach is an incredible resource for patients who have undergone or are pending a gastrectomy. Apart from providing opportunities for one-on-one support and information about treatments and clinical trials, NSFC also highlights various gastric cancer registries that patients and/or their families can join and help advance gastric cancer research.
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Missed our earlier blogs this November?
Our webinars are a valuable member benefit, and we encourage you to sign up as a member so you can join the live webinars and access our earlier webinar series on demand!
You might also like to explore our podcasts. The CGA-IGC Research Collaboration series or others from the CGA-IGC Podcast Series (Seasons 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7) presented by the CGA-IGC Education Committee. Or, explore our Expert Approach to Hereditary Gastrointestinal Cancers podcast series (Seasons 1 and 2).
We're also on Spotify!
Also, looking for other educational resources? Toolkits? Journal scans?
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