ASCO and the American Cancer Society (ACS) initiated a collaboration to ensure that people can easily find the trusted, expert-approved cancer content they need when turning to either organization for information. As an initial step, the organizations are cross-sharing select cancer prevention, screening, and survivorship resources on their patient and consumer education websites, Cancer.Net and Cancer.org.
“ASCO and the American Cancer Society have long shared a commitment to empowering patients with information they can trust,” said ASCO Chief Executive Officer Clifford A. Hudis, MD, FACP, FASCO. “As we commemorate World Cancer Day, February 4, it is especially fitting that we formalize our partnership with ACS and advance our shared goal of ‘closing the gap.’ We are thrilled to be working together in the best interests of patients and look forward to continued collaboration in the future.”
ASCO’s Cancer.Net and ACS’s Cancer.org have similar editorial approaches, both offering trustworthy, evidence-based information free of commercial influence. Content on Cancer.Net is reviewed and approved by an editorial board of oncologists and other experts, and Cancer.org medical content is reviewed by on-staff and external subject-matter experts, including oncologists and other specialists. By finding new ways to combine the organizations’ respective expertise, both can maximize the impact for patients and the general public.
“This collaboration is a natural extension of the relationship between the organizations and aligned to the ACS goal to improve lives. Through combining each organization’s unique expertise, we will further empower patients, caregivers, and physicians by increasing access to up-to-date educational resources. Through single access points, our collaborative sites will provide the latest information on all aspects of the cancer continuum—from cancer prevention and screening to cancer care and survivorship. We could not be more enthusiastic about working alongside the experts at ASCO, who share our values and are long-standing partners in the fight against cancer,” said Karen Knudsen, MBA, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of the ACS.
In their initial content-sharing efforts, ASCO and ACS have prioritized content that reflects each organization’s distinctive strengths and subject-matter expertise. The first resources available on both websites include:
- ASCO Survivorship Care Planning Resources: ASCO’s survivorship care plans include information that patients and primary care providers need to plan future checkups, cancer tests, and screenings; anticipate late effects of treatment; and improve baseline health after cancer. In addition, both Cancer.Net and Cancer.org now feature survivorship resources on cancer rehabilitation; the long-term side effects of treatment; and aspects of life after cancer, such as fertility, childbearing, and posttraumatic stress.
- ACS Cancer Prevention and Screening Resources: ACS’s cancer screening guidelines are a hallmark of the organization’s resources for clinicians and patients as a trusted leader in the prevention and early detection of cancer. People visiting Cancer.Net will also find information from ACS about smoking and tobacco cessation, sun prevention and skin checking, and current knowledge about cancer causes and how to interpret related news.
“ASCO’s survivorship care resources empower patients to be full partners in their transition out of active cancer treatment,” said Jyoti D. Patel, MD, FASCO, Medical Director of Thoracic Oncology and Assistant Director for Clinical Research at the Lurie Cancer Center of Northwestern University, and Cancer.Net Editor-in-Chief. “After treatment, patients and their families often feel a tremendous amount of uncertainty. Survivorship care plans help answer questions about what life will look like and facilitate important conversations with primary care providers. I’m thrilled that these resources are now more widely available.”
“Research conducted by the ACS shows over 42% of the cases of cancer and 45% of cancer deaths are preventable,” said Carmen E. Guerra, MD, MSCE, FACP, Associate Professor at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania and Associate Director of Diversity and Outreach at the Abramson Cancer Center, and a member of the ACS’s National Board of Directors. “Prevention also offers the most cost-effective long-term strategy for the control of cancer. This new partnership between ASCO and ACS will increase the availability and awareness of prevention and early detection strategies that we already know work, and which can help to reduce the number of preventable cancers and cancer deaths.”
ASCO and ACS will promote their shared content visibly on Cancer.Net and Cancer.org, as well as through social media and patient and provider outreach.
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