Cancer Support

This special series introduces you to our Helpline counselors and specialists, our frontline workers who are tirelessly assisting cancer patients and caregivers. They provide emotional support and navigation on finances, nutrition, referrals as well as challenges presented by COVID-19, including relief grants for financially distressed patients. In this entry meet Cancer Support Helpline Counselor Terri Bauer, MSW, LCSW, OSW-C.

March is national social work month, and we want to take a moment to thank social workers and the CSC workforce for the passion, knowledge, and energy they bring to their work each day. We also want to say that we are particularly appreciative of their efforts during this complicated time, which has made many people feel a heightened sense of anxiety, sadness, or concern.

Support groups can be hugely helpful for those impacted by cancer. It creates a space where the good and the bad can be shared within a supportive community. No matter the circumstance, a support group ensures that no one is trying to manage tough cancer experiences alone.

Our Way Forward was created to encourage ovarian cancer patients, their loved ones and healthcare providers to rethink how they talk about ovarian cancer.

What is sarcoma and why is it sometimes called the “forgotten cancer?"

Brain cancer is a life-changing and often lethal illness that warrants our increased attention and resources. Knowledge of the brain tumor experience by a wider portion of the population is an important first step to fighting this disease.

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.

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.

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.

Despite growing numbers of women joining science, technology, engineering, and mathematics professions, the field of oncology is still a male-dominated one.

According to the latest American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) survey, for example, women made up fewer than 30 percent of the overall oncologist workforce.

That’s why during this Women’s History Month, we recognize the valuable contributions these three women (and many others) have made to improve cancer care for patients and families.