COA Patient Advocacy Network
News Bulletin: November 2022
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Advocacy Chats
Educational Conversations on Policy Issues & Cancer Research
How Cancer Rehabilitation Benefits Patients
Chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, and other cancer treatments are essential tools when fighting cancer. Regaining strength, mobility, and mental ability after treatment is just as critical. Join CPAN Director of Patient Advocacy and Education Rose Gerber, MS, and ReVital Cancer Rehabilitation Director of Education Alaina Newell, PT, DPT, for a discussion on the importance of cancer rehabilitation on Wednesday, November 9, at 12 p.m. ET. Register today.
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ICYMI: How 340B in Big Health Systems is Hurting Patients
The 340B Drug Pricing Program is meant to provide access to prescription drugs at significantly discounted prices to patients in need—but the program’s current structure allows hospitals to keep cost savings instead of passing them on to patients who need them most. COA’s Rose Gerber, Ted Okon, and Nicolas Ferreyros sat down to discuss the history of the 340B Program, how it got to its current state, the latest data on the use of the program, and how it can be fixed so its results match its intentions.
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Understanding Advocacy in a Community Oncology Setting
How to Use Social Media to Advance Your Advocacy
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In addition to the many traditional media channels advocates can leverage in their advocacy, social media offers opportunities to engage directly with target audiences. Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube can be especially helpful in advancing advocacy goals.
Twitter allows advocates to directly connect with the public—including potential supporters—and rapidly share information. Posts on Twitter are limited to just 280 characters, requiring advocates to share only the most important pieces of a story or policy issue. Similarly, Facebook allows advocates to connect with potential supporters, but the platform is better for sharing longer posts or more complicated stories. Facebook is especially well-suited for sharing visuals like photos or videos from advocacy events.
YouTube is unique because it is designed specifically for video content. Advocates can use YouTube channels to share video content of advocacy events like Hill days, policymaker site visits, or CPAN chapter meetings. Community oncology advocacy is most effective when it is personal—video content allows advocates to widely share their personal stories.
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Fox News 10/30
Researchers looked at the likelihood of breast cancer recurring in patients who were considered in complete remission after receiving chemotherapy and radiation without surgery. Thirty-one of the 50 patients who were followed had a complete response to chemotherapy—and none had a breast tumor recurrence after a median follow-up of 26.4 months, according to the study.
HealthDay 10/27
The latest statistics from the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) show a continuing decline in the number of Americans who die from cancer. "From 2015 to 2019, overall cancer death rates decreased by 2.1% per year in men and women combined," NCI wrote in a statement; deaths from the number one cancer killer, lung cancer, fell by 4% each year from 2015 to 2019, while deaths linked to melanoma fell by 5% annually.
NBC News 10/11
A 10-year study, recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that colonoscopies cut the risk of colon cancer by about a fifth, far below estimates from earlier scientific studies. Doctors in the United States are concerned that the study’s results—based on more than 80,000 men and women ages 55 to 64—could cause doubt about the effectiveness of colonoscopies, which are recommended for U.S. adults every 10 years, starting at age 45.
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Community Oncology 101
What is 340B?
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The 340B Drug Discount Program should help patients access the treatments they need at an affordable price, but its current structure allows hospitals to keep discounts for themselves and profit excessively. In this edition of the Cancer Policy Minute, Ted Okon outlines the history of 340B and how it’s used today.
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The @OncologyCOA YouTube channel offers a variety of educational advocacy videos for practices, chapters, and advocates to learn more about the biggest challenges and policy opportunities facing community oncology.
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