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Starting in 2012 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began to integrate the patient perspective into the drug development process through their Patient-Focused Drug Development (PFDD) initiative. The patient advocacy community can and should partner with the FDA to ensure that they are measuring the full patient experience in clinical trials to include the physical, social, and emotional impacts of a therapy, and CSC has been working closely with the FDA, and other researchers, to explore ways to do so in a more meaningful way.

With summer just around the corner, your risk of developing skin cancer becomes even higher. While it may be tempting to spend more hours out in the sun, be sure to take necessary measures to protect yourself from harmful rays.

Here are five ways you can protect your skin from the sun this summer.

On Sunday, May 13, I set out on the Amgen Tour of California to spread the word about all the work we do here at the Cancer Support Community for cancer patients and their loved ones.

Each month, the Cancer Policy Insitute will be profiling advocates who have been engaged in advocacy in their home state, their community, with elected officials, and more. Read on to learn more about our featured advocate for the month of May and her years in advocacy on Capitol Hill and with her own consulting practice. If you are interested in learning more about policy, advocacy, and ways to get involved, sign up to be a part of the Grassroots Network!

Last week, two staff members of the Cancer Support Community (CSC) traveled to Tuba City, Arizona, the largest community on the Navajo Nation and home to more than 8,600 people. There, they met with Navajo and Hopi leaders to learn about the unique challenges facing Native-Americans and their access to cancer care.

The following is a Q-and-A with programs and services manager Katie Dimond about her experience in Arizona.

It is a first in a series of new CSC programs working with Navajo Nation leaders, medical leaders, and other advocates to create a ground-breaking movement for cancer support and treatment on the largest American Indian Reservation.

In January, with the generous financial support of the Barbara Bradley Baekgaard Family Foundation, Northwest Medical Specialties became a CSC health care partner. With six locations in Washington State, Northwest Medical Specialties is committed to providing world-class, holistic care to everyone who walks through their doors.

The CSC Program Director at Northwest Medical Specialties is a social worker named Abra Kelson. We asked Abra a few questions about her experiences launching the CSC at Northwest Medical Specialties and how her programming will impact patients and caregivers in her community.

A recent study conducted by Mausbach et al. entitled “Healthcare Costs of Depression in Patients Diagnosed with Cancer” found that cancer patients with depression had total annual health care charges that were 113 percent higher than non-depressed cancer patients. For example, patients with depression had estimated average charges of $235,337 in comparison to the average charges of non-depressed patients, which totaled to $110,650.

As part of our partnership with the Biden Cancer Initiative, Vice President Joe Biden met with four cancer patients who are involved with our Gilda’s Club Middle Tennessee affiliate, which is one of our 170 locations worldwide that provides free cancer support.

Each of them has a unique experience with cancer – and each shared their insights with Vice President Biden during his trek across the country to learn more about the challenges facing all people living with cancer.

A new type of policy has been introduced that has the potential to put cancer patients at serious financial risk. You may not have heard of copay accumulators or accumulator adjustment programs before, so this blog will provide an overview of these policies to help prepare you in case you might be at risk of facing this barrier to affordable cancer care.

Each month, the Cancer Policy Insitute will be profiling advocates who have been engaged in advocacy in their home state, their community, with elected officials, and more. Read on to learn more about our featured advocate for the month of April and his passion for promoting patient-centered, heart-driven compassionate care. If you are interested in learning more about policy, advocacy, and ways to get involved, sign up to be a part of the Grassroots Network!