December 15, 2009
Pfizer Inc. announced last week that it will extend through 2010 its program providing free prescription medications for people who have lost their jobs.
According to the Associated Press, the Pfizer program makes available more than 70 types of widely prescribed medications it manufactures, such as anti-pain drugs and anti-depressants. The program helps people who have lost jobs since Jan. 1, 2009 and have been taking the drug for three months or more.
Visit the Pfizer website for more information about the program and the medications offered. For more information about specific chemotherapy drugs available through Pfizer’s patient assistance program, call 866-706-2400.
Leave a Comment » | 
Financial Assistance | Tagged: cancer information, cancer patients, chemotherapy, coping, cost of care, financial resources, low-income | 
Permalink
Posted by Jeanie M. Barnett
November 23, 2009
A new online resource from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) answers some important questions about seasonal and 2009 H1N1 flu for cancer patients and survivors.
While cancer patients and survivors may not be at any greater risk for infection with either 2009 H1N1 flu or seasonal flu, the CDC cautions that cancer patients and survivors are at higher risk for hospitalization and potentially life-threatening complications from all types of flu.
The CDC recommends that people who have cancer or a history of cancer should receive a seasonal flu vaccine and the H1N1 flu shot (not the nasal spray vaccine). The seasonal flu vaccine alone is not expected to protect against 2009 H1N1 flu. Household members and caregivers of cancer patients and survivors also should be vaccinated against both types of flu.
Find out more at www.cdc.gov/cancer/flu
Leave a Comment » | Caregiving, Coping with Cancer, Survivorship | Tagged: cancer information, cancer patients, cancer survivors, caregivers | Permalink
Posted by Jeanie M. Barnett
November 19, 2009
November Is Lung Cancer Awareness Month.
Over 200,000 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer in 2009. Lung cancer not only affects patients but also families and loved ones. CancerCare offers free, professional counseling and practical support to anyone coping with a lung cancer diagnosis through its National Lung Cancer Program.
In addition, CancerCare’s online resource, www.lungcancer.org, provides reliable information to anyone affected by lung cancer. Learn more about the full range of services CancerCare offers to people facing lung cancer, including: counseling, support groups, financial assistance, publications and educational workshops.
You can also read stories of people who are coping with lung cancer and share your own story to help inspire others; and post a message in honor of a loved one on our Virtual Wall of Hope.
Listen to CancerCare’s upcoming Connect Education Workshops over the telephone or via live streaming through the internet (registration is required):
Dec. 9 - Clinical Trials: Improving Treatment Options and Care for People Living with Cancer
Jan. 15 - Understanding Adjuvant Therapy for Early-Stage Lung Cancer
To speak directly to an oncology social worker, call us at 1-800-813-HOPE (4673).
Leave a Comment » | Coping with Cancer, Learn More About Your Diagnosis | Tagged: cancer information, cancer patients, Clinical Trials, counseling | Permalink
Posted by jzahora
September 2, 2009
The trend toward the centralization of where cancer surgeries are performed puts an increased travel burden on patients, according to new findings reported in this month’s issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Numerous studies show that hospitals that perform a higher number of surgeries per year for a specific diagnosis have better patient outcomes. Especially for rare diagnoses, these high-volume hospitals (HVHs) are highly recommended, and patients are heeding this advice. According to this latest study, the number of procedures performed at HVHs increased significantly over the 10-year period examined (1996-2006).
HVHs tend to be located in larger metropolitan areas that are a longer distance from many patients’ homes, the study shows, especially for patients with esophageal and pancreatic cancers, who endured the highest increase in travel distance from home to the facility where their surgeries were performed.
The cost of traveling farther distances for their care may pose a significant barrier to patients with limited resources, the study’s authors suggest. CancerCare helps by providing limited transportation grants to eligible individuals through our Financial Assistance program. CancerCare also assists multiple myeloma patients with treatment-related transportation costs through our Door to Door program.
Leave a Comment » | Financial Assistance | Tagged: cancer patients, cost of care, Door to Door program, financial resources, transportation grants | Permalink
Posted by Monica Cavazos Mendez
August 4, 2009
Experts agree that one of the biggest barriers to advancing cancer research is the lack of volunteers who participate in clinical trials. Clinical trials, which test the safety effectiveness of new treatments and then compare them to standard treatments, are the only way advances can be made; however, only 3 percent of adult cancer patients participate.
A recent article in the New York Times explores the reasons why clinical trial enrollment is so low and how researchers are working to change this through new methods of patient selection that would require far fewer than the usual 5,000-10,000 patients needed for each trial.
For more information on finding upcoming or ongoing clinical trials, visit www.clinicaltrials.gov and www.emergingmed.com.
Leave a Comment » | Coping with Cancer, Learn More About Your Diagnosis | Tagged: cancer patients, cancer research, Clinical Trials | Permalink
Posted by Monica Cavazos Mendez
