Nonprofit’s leadership urges passage of this health care bill in Congress.

WASHINGTON, D.C., December 18, 2024 — At the Cancer Support Community (CSC), we are committed to breaking down barriers to cancer care for individuals coping with this devastating diagnosis. The Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act, H.R. 2407 / S. 2085 (Nancy Gardner Sewell), would create a new coverage pathway, giving people on Medicare access to new, breakthrough screening technologies that detect cancer. This bipartisan bill would modernize Medicare to allow for coverage of blood-based multi-cancer early detection tests and future screening test technologies, such as urine, stool, or hair tests, once they are approved by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA). The creation of new cancer screening tests is the first step toward saving more lives by detecting cancer that currently do not have screening tests. People must be able to access, afford, and benefit from them.

Ahead of the upcoming vote on the package, CSC’s senior leadership released the following statements:   

“Through our work supporting hundreds of thousands of patients across the country, we’ve seen firsthand the impact of late-stage diagnoses and that is why we are so encouraged by the leadership Congress has shown in putting forward the Nancy Gardner Sewell Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act (H.R. 2407) / the Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act (S. 2085) for a vote this week,” said Sally Werner, CSC’s CEO. “We proudly stand alongside other cancer advocacy organizations in support of this legislation.”   

Daneen Sekoni, CSC’s Vice President of Policy & Advocacy, added: “Establishing a strong foundation for Medicare coverage of tools that can detect more cancers is essential to changing the experience of cancer for so many in this country. When Congress ensured coverage pathways for tools like mammography and colonoscopies, it saved countless lives. MCED has the potential to do the same. We strongly support congressional leadership’s commitment to cancer detection, and we are urging passage of this bipartisan legislative package this week.” 

Find more information about the Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act and join us in urging members of Congress to ensure coverage is part of the final package. 

About the Cancer Support Community

The Cancer Support Community is a global nonprofit that uplifts and strengthens people impacted by cancer. We are dedicated to fostering a community where people find connection, compassion, and knowledge. We provide professionally led support and navigation services, along with social connections and award-winning education — when, where and how impacted individuals prefer throughout their cancer experience. These resources are available at 196 Cancer Support Community, Gilda’s Club, and healthcare partner locations as well as online and over the phone — all at no cost. We amplify the voices of those impacted by cancer through research and advocacy and create solutions that break down barriers to care and close the healthcare gap for communities whose members are disproportionately affected by cancer. 

WASHINGTON, D.C., November 4, 2024 — The Cancer Support Community (CSC) is pleased to welcome Lisa E. Ireland as Executive Vice President, External Relations, effective November 4, 2024. CSC’s mission is to uplift and strengthen people impacted by cancer by providing support, fostering compassionate communities and breaking down barriers to care. Ms. Ireland comes to CSC with more than 25 years of nonprofit experience in administration, fundraising, donor engagement, communications and strategic marketing, and finance.

“I strongly believe in the transformative power of philanthropy,” Ms. Ireland said. “I am deeply dedicated to upholding the mission of the organizations I serve, viewing it as a guiding principle that informs my decisions and actions, and I am committed to connecting donors with organizations they wish to support.”

CSC CEO Sally Werner is thrilled about Ms. Ireland joining the CSC team. “I am very impressed with her exceptional success in building and leading high-performing teams, securing vital financial resources, and elevating organizational reputation. Her proven record of developing and leading a comprehensive, diversified development strategy, combined with her demonstrated ability to execute an integrated marketing plan that enhances brand awareness, will be vital as we work to amplify CSC’s mission and initiatives.”

Over the course of her career, Ms. Ireland has experienced and adapted to dramatic changes in how the nonprofit sector operates, including the increased pursuit of partnerships and collaborations to address societal challenges, along with the more common use of technology to support nonprofits’ abilities to make data-driven decisions, boost operations, and increase transparency and outreach.

Ms. Ireland’s career spans diverse sectors, including education, healthcare, human services, and science. Prior to joining CSC, she led global operations for the Longevity Science Foundation, an international nonprofit that funds research to expand the healthy human lifespan. Her previous roles include Vice President for Institutional Advancement at the Rochester Museum & Science Center, Director of Donor Relations and Stewardship at the Rochester Institute of Technology, and Executive Director of United Way of Orleans County.

“Each nonprofit I have worked for holds personal significance to me, which, in turn, has helped me make meaningful contributions to their cause,” Ms. Ireland observed. Ms. Ireland lost both of her parents to cancer. “I can remember the moment when each of my parents was diagnosed. So, cancer has always been a very big piece of who I am, personally and professionally, going back to my very first job as senior director of development at Hospice of Orleans.”

Reflecting on joining CSC, Ms. Ireland shared: “I'm excited to support an organization that wants to deliver on its mission so strongly and is really focused on how we can better support those that need us. At the same time, I’m looking forward to supporting CSC’s network partners, who are providing essential services to impacted people in their local community.”

Ms. Ireland currently serves as an advisory board member for the Canandaigua National Bank and Trust, which is the only local, full-service, community-owned financial institution in the Rochester area. She also serves on the board and is the development chair at Miss Julie's School of Beauty, a nonprofit cosmetology school that empowers survivors of human trafficking through vocational training.

Her public engagements include a keynote address at the U.S. Library of Congress and talks at top-tier institutions such as the University of Oxford. She also recently gave the closing keynote address at the CASE Conference for Corporate and Foundation Relations Officers. In March 2024, she was selected by Rochester Business Journal as a 2024 Women of Excellence honoree. In the same month, she was recognized by South Florida Business and Wealth magazine with a Prestigious Women Awards 2024.

“If I look across the spectrum of my career, every organization I’ve joined makes an impact on the community and the people in that community. At the end of the day, I want to know that I've made a difference in my community.”

About the Cancer Support Community

The Cancer Support Community is a global nonprofit that uplifts and strengthens people impacted by cancer. We are dedicated to fostering a community where people find connection, compassion, and knowledge. We provide professionally led support and navigation services, along with social connections and award-winning education — when, where and how impacted individuals prefer throughout their cancer experience. These resources are available at 196 Cancer Support Community, Gilda’s Club, and healthcare partner locations as well as online and over the phone — all at no cost. We amplify the voices of those impacted by cancer through research and advocacy and create solutions that break down barriers to care and close the healthcare gap for communities whose members are disproportionately affected by cancer.