ACADEMY PUBLIC POLICIES

The Future of Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment

BREAST CANCER SCREENING DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT

More Information

 1. The Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer

• Visit the resource room of your local cancer center to find educational booklets on the specific cancer you are interested in.

• Call the Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER and request information (this service is sponsored by the National Cancer Institute).

• Visit the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) web site at www.cancer.gov.

• Go to the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s patient-oriented web site at www.cancer.net

• Visit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s web site at www.leukemialymphoma.org.

• Go to the American Cancer Society’s web site at www.cancer.org

2. Patient Advocacy and Survivorship Groups

Note: These are composed mainly of cancer survivors and other volunteers who provide information, inspiration, and more.

• Visit the Association of Community Cancer Centers’ web site at www.accc-cancer.org

 and click on “Patient Advocacy Groups” to find the groups most relevant to the cancer you are interested in.

• Go to the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship’s web site at www.canceradvocacy.org

• Visit the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s web site at www.livestrong.org.

3. Patient and Family Support Services

• Inquire at your local cancer center about individual or group therapy and counseling for cancer patients and their loved ones (children, spouses, significant others).

• CancerCare at www.cancercare.org provides free counseling, information, and financial assistance to patients.

• The Wellness Community at www.thewellnesscommunity.org  provides counseling and educational programs across the United States and abroad.

• The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization at www.nhpco.org explains hospice and enables you to find hospice agencies in your region.

• The Visiting Nurse Associations of America at www.vnaa.org  provides access to nursing and home care agencies.

• Go to www.accc-cancer.org  and click on “Cancer Care Resources.”

• Visit the web sites listed under 1 and 2, above.

4. Clinical Trials

Note: Only some of the trials available at any cancer center are listed on the Internet.

• Ask your oncologist or the research nurses at your local cancer center about clinical trials at that location.

• Go to the web sites of the different cancer centers in your area.

• Visit the National Cancer Institute’s web site at www.cancer.gov  to find information about participating in a clinical trial and to access the largest nonprofit database of trials in the United States.

• Go to www.emergingmed.com , which helps match patients to appropriate clinical trials.

• Visit the TrialCheck web site at www.CancerTrialsHelp.org  for the most up to-date information on cancer clinical trials.

5. Genetic Testing for Cancer Susceptibility

• Inquire at your local cancer center about genetic testing or contact the National Society of Genetics Counselors at www.nsgc.org  for a listing of genetics counselors in your area who specialize in cancer.

• Go to the interactive government web site http://www.cancer.gov  to learn about your personal risk factors for developing cancer.

• Visit www.facingourrisk.com  to determine your risk of breast and ovarian cancers.

• Go to www.cancer.net  to learn more.

6. Nutrition, Exercise, and Cancer

• Visit the American Institute for Cancer Research’s web site at http://www.aicr.org/ for up-to-date information and resources.

• Go to Cancer Nutrition Info at www.cancernutrition.com/   for sound nutritional advice during and after treatment.

• Consult the book Eating Well, Staying Well during and after Cancer, by Abby Bloch, PhD, RD, et al. (American Cancer Society, 2003), which contains sound advice without the exaggerated claims of many “nutrition and cancer” books.

• Consult the book After Cancer Treatment: Heal Faster, Better, Stronger, by Julie K. Silver, MD ( Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006).

• Visit the web sites listed under 1 and 2, above.