Letter from Lisa Switzer, M.A., CEO |
Dear Friends,
How did it get to be June so quickly? We have had a very busy spring at WSCR-NCORP – I think that’s how March, April and May ended up in the rear-view mirror before we knew it.
On May 7th we held our first in-person event in over a year and half. Ribbons and Roses hosted more than 70 guests, in a safe, socially-distance setting, where we gathered to recognize the dedicated staff, Board of Trustees and physician partners of WSCR-NCORP who bring hope to cancer patients across the West. The event raised more than $12,000, we toasted our Berris Awards winners Dr. David Trevarthen, Jerry Hayes and Debbie Markham, and enjoyed each other’s company face-to-face.
Engaging in face-to-face conversations is happening more and more as we move toward the summer months, and some of us are recognizing just what a luxury it is to be in the physical presence of others. Building trust and creating lasting partnerships happens so much more naturally when we sit across the table from one another. Herodotis, the ancient Greek philosopher, said, “Men [sic] trust their ears less than their eyes.”
Over the past several weeks, we have been mindfully building and rebuilding relationships with other nonprofit organizations and with members of legislative offices and an effort to become more of a viable community partner. It has been wonderful to sit together over lunch or coffee and share what is happening within our NCORP and learn how we can work with other organizations to get the word out about cancer clinical trials and the work we do while also supporting their efforts.
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Program Spotlight: Cancer Care Delivery Research |
Cancer Care Delivery Research (CCDR) is an evolving multidisciplinary science that seeks to improve clinical outcomes and patient well-being. The goal of CCDR is to identify activities and approaches that can be changed quickly and immediately improve care.
CCDR generates evidence that can be used to improve clinical practice patterns, as well as develop and test promising interventions within the health care delivery system. It also supports development of new and generalizable knowledge about the effectiveness, acceptability, cost, optimal delivery mode, and causal mechanisms. According to the NCI, CCDR studies are all about evidence-based practice transformation. Approximately 6000 patients and 400 clinicians and staff across the country have participated in CCDR studies to date.
Another key dimension of CCDR is that these studies are only open to NCORPs like our organization. The NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) is a national network that brings cancer clinical trials and care delivery studies to people in their own communities. These studies are brought to patients in their own doctor’s office where they are already comfortable. They can run six, 12 or 24 months typically.
NCORP is comprised of 46 Community Sites across the country, 14 of which are designated as Minority/Underserved Community Sites.
In speaking to the role CCDR research has played in our continuum of programs since 2015, WSCR-NCORP Director of Clinical Resources Ginger Licht asked, “Is treatment the only part of diagnosis we should help cancer patients with? What about the rest of the journey? For example, understanding what is happening now and in the future: emotional stress, financial stress, stress for caregivers, etc. The NCI has expanded its cancer research trials to look at how we can help patients with the rest of the process: education of disease and treatment, emotional counseling, financial counseling, and care giver support.”
A new CCDR study expected to open this year will determine if a proactive financial navigation self-advocacy program decreases the risk of financial household hardship over 12 months among patients and their family caregivers. The patient and the caregivers will receive education on budget planning, medical expense management, financial and legal planning, debt management and relief from CENTS (Consumer Education and Training Services). Additionally, they will receive economic assistance from the national Patient Advocate Foundation with out-of-pocket medical costs, health insurance, employment protection, and disability benefits applications/appeals.
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Welcome to the Board of Trustees: Dr. Blake Parsons, D.O. |
Since 2013, Dr. Blake Parsons, D.O., has been an Internal Medicine Hospitalist at a local HMO. He came from California to Colorado for his Internship/ Residency: Internal Medicine at Exempla St. Joseph Hospital and stayed to make it his home.
Dr. Parsons tells us, "I was born and raised just north of San Francisco, attended University of California - Santa Barbara for college and Western University of Health Sciences for medical school. I moved to Denver in 1999 for my Internal Medicine residency, and love living in Colorado with no plans to leave. My family and I enjoy travelling, skiing, camping, biking, hiking, fly fishing and cooking and enjoying different foods."
"I have been involved with Western States Cancer Research NCORP for almost 10 years. I am looking forward to participating as a Trustee on the Board, bringing both personal and professional experience. Clinical trials and medical research are critical to advancing treatment options for patients. Additionally, it is important that these trials and treatments are available to everyone."
Please join us in welcoming Dr. Parsons to our Board of Trustees.
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June Community Partner Spotlight: Epic Experience |
Nationally recognized as Cancer Survivor Month, June is an opportunity for all 16.9 million cancer survivors across the country to celebrate their milestones and recognize those who have supported them along the way. We couldn't think of a better nonprofit to highlight this month, therefore, than Epic Experience.
Cancer doesn’t stop affecting someone’s life when treatment ends. Survivors don’t always get to ring a bell and say “Adios” to the enemy that uprooted life as they knew it. The physical, mental, and emotional side effects often continue long after, forever changing relationships, hobbies, social life, work, and well-being.
Epic Experience was founded to meet survivors in this sometimes lonely and hopeless place, to show them they are not alone; thus, the organization’s mission is to empower adult cancer survivors and thrivers to live beyond cancer. Today there are more than 2,000 individuals who are alumni of their programs. One of these is Kathy Trujillo who is a member of the Western States Cancer Research-NCORP Board of Trustees.
Epic Experience has been uplifting the lives of adult survivors since 2012 through our signature program of free week-long camps. What makes Epic Experience unique is the experience of adventure and activity through summer and winter sports combined with peer-to-peer relationships in a small, intimate setting on a ranch in the Colorado Rockies. One-Day programs, modeled after our camps, have also been added to augment our in-person programs. Although Covid-19 interrupted their 2020 schedule, Epic Experience is scheduling for the 2021 season.
In addition to in-person programs, three online programs were initiated to serve their community. The “Campfires of Hope” Living Beyond Cancer podcast series is aimed to provide information and resources for cancer survivors and caregivers, while navigating through the cancer journey.
The second program, “How to Cancer” YouTube series provides an a la carte menu of 3–5-minute educational snippets for the cancer community. Topics such as, “How to Talk to a Sibling about your Cancer,” “How to Talk about Loss,” “How to Talk about a Prosthetic,” and “What to Wear to a Cancer Appointment” are some of the subjects available.
Their third online program is Low Impact Training Classes, which are a combination of functional strength, stretching, balance, and low-intensity exercise. These are designed for those who want to improve their fitness without being overwhelmed.
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Matt Applesmith Joins WSCR Team |
Matt Applesmith joined our team in March as a Clinical Data Coordinator. In explaining his connection to our mission, Matt tells us, "My mom hit her 20-year anniversary of surviving breast cancer this year. She is my biggest inspiration and gives me strength every day to be the best person I can be."
"There was a lot of unknowns about breast cancer 20 years ago and it has been inspiring to see cancer research come so far in 20 years! Being in the data department of cancer research can be less glamorous than other roles sometimes, but the decisions made on efficacy and safety fall on the data to prove themselves. I love finding a patient who we thought our organization lost touch with and hearing them happily share they continue to be cancer free and are going strong."
"As a child I went to Camp Kesem, a summer camp for kids who were impacted by cancer. Kesem means magic and I look back on those weeks as a camper as magical. I got to learn how to cope with my mom’s diagnosis and meet others who went through similar things. I and my whole family stay connected with the campers and counselors who we met there, and my mom still supports the board at Stanford."
"I grew up in Los Gatos, California, aptly named “The Cats” because of the presence of mountain lions in the area. After graduating with a degree in Chemistry from Sonoma State University, I decided to go on an adventure with my then girlfriend (now fiancé!) to Colorado."
"Since then, I have been climbing mountains, hiking, and snowshoeing as much as I possibly can. This summer I hope things open up more and I can climb a few more 14’ers and improve at volleyball. I also love going to the movies and even rented out a theater a few weeks to take my fiancé on a date night!" Matt's positive nature is sure to lift your spirits any day you chat with him in our office! Please join us in welcoming Matt to our team.
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Photo of Staff Who Joined Us for Ribbons and Roses |
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Learn More about our All-Heart Heroes Giving Circle |
Our Vision is the marriage of clinical research and compassion through the progress we help affect through community oncology studies.
Come join our All-Heart Heroes Circle today to help us attain this vision! The All-Heart Heroes are an already-expanding group of individual and family donors who make an annual gift of $100 - $499. Is this for you? It is if you want to make sure clinical trials available in our local communities. Because many things are changing in cancer treatment, including a growing number of seniors living independently, the aging population can be complicated to deliver cancer care to and best accessed locally in the doctor's offices where people are comfortable.
We honor all of our supporters whose investments are generating new approaches to preventing, diagnosing, and treating cancer. Individuals and organizations who make significant annual and major gifts to Western States Cancer Research NCORP enjoy recognition opportunities through our giving societies.
Learn More about our Giving Circles
Please contact our Major Gifts and Planned Giving Officer I 720-475-5728
Visit the Giving Circles section of our Ways to Support WSCR-NCORP webpage on WesternStatesNcorp.org by clicking here.
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Members of the Board of Trustees enjoying the event |
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Honoree Debbie Markham Accepting her Berris Award |
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To keep up on what's happening at WSCR and read important medical articles, please follow us on Social Media |
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