The Cancer Support Community Releases Research at ASCO

June 1, 2018
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From today through June 5, we will be at the largest gathering of oncology professionals from around the world in Chicago, Illinois.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual conference is a fantastic opportunity for us to share three exciting new research abstracts that will greatly impact people affected by cancer.

Throughout the conference, we will post a series of short Q-and-A blogs explaining the significance of our findings. Today’s blog covers our latest research on communication between gastric cancer patients and their health care team.  

Below see our first Q-and-A with our President, Linda House, on the subject.

Q: Why is it important for gastric cancer patients to have good communication with their healthcare team?

A: Gastric Cancer patients are concerned about their overall quality of life, specifically their symptom burden and finances. It is important that they have a full understanding and a role in making the best care decisions for themselves.

Q: How will gastric cancer patients’ benefit from having this research released at ASCO 2018?

A: By having this study released at ASCO, it raises the awareness for the patient, caregiver and the healthcare team to really focus on information that is most important to the patient.

Q: Why aren’t gastric cancer survivors not fully prepared to discuss treatment options with their healthcare team?

A: This is a consistent finding all around and may be related to the acute nature of the disease. It is rapidly moving and decisions have to be made so quickly that potentially patients don’t have time to really get the full picture, which is again why it’s so important to get healthcare professionals to stop and acknowledge that and take the time.