Publications & Reports

Transforming the Health System
 

COMMUNICATIONS INITIATIVE (MESSAGES)
The public receives mixed messages about cancer and ways to reduce their risk for disease. C-Change, in partnership with the Ad Council, developed a series of consumer-tested messages highlighting ways to “Reduce Your Risk of Cancer” through prevention and early detection. The messages focus on four key modifiable risk factors for cancer: smoking/tobacco use, nutrition, exercise, and screening. The website features an online ‘Playbook’ thatprovides downloadable templates of the messages in several formats that can be utilized as provided or adapted to fit an organization’s specific needs. The website also includes:
• Summary of underlying consumer research findings behind the messages
• Guidelines on how to incorporate the messages into an organization’s communication programs and tools to help disseminate them
• Messaging platforms in English and Spanish
  MAKING THE BUSINESS CASE FOR PREVENTION
Employers are uniquely positioned to provide and promote health — and to realize a return on their investment. C-Change, in partnership with the Ad Council, developed materials that document the rationale, implementation strategies, and return on investment for employers to provide and promote medically-proven cancer prevention and early detection services through their employee health insurance policies. The C-Change website materials include:
• White Paper and Executive Summary
• Fact Sheet with statistical highlights
• Key Messages for decision makers and media contacts
C-Change also promotes adoption of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer™ Gold
Standard Accreditation by public, private and non-profit sector employers. See
www.cancergoldstandard.org for more information
 

PATIENT NAVIGATION PROMOTIONAL TOOLKIT
Accessing the health system can be confusing and difficult — especially when faced with a complex disease like cancer. Patient navigation programs have been successful in helping patients and families access services that deal with the wide range of medical, psychosocial, and logistical challenges associated with cancer. In an effort to increase the availability of community-based patient navigation programs, C-Change, in collaboration with the National Association of Social Workers (NASW), developed a Cancer Patient Navigation (CPN) Promotional Toolkit. The web-based toolkit includes:
• CPN Promotional videos available in 7- and 28-minute versions
• Brochure summarizing the benefits and rationale for patient navigation programs
• CPN Information Sheet
• Frequently Asked Questions
  CANCER CORE COMPETENCY INITIATIVE & TOOLKIT
The demand for cancer services is projected to exceed the supply of cancer health professionals — threatening access and quality across the continuum of research and care. In an effort to complement the workforce development efforts of other cancer organizations, C-Change developed the Cancer Core Competency Initiative to improve the cancer knowledge and skills of non-oncology health professionals. An expert panel developed cancer competency standards and implementation tools that have proven useful and flexible among diverse disciplines, within different types of organizations, and across various cancer topics. The web-based toolkit features information such as:
• Overview of the challenges facing the health workforce
• Competency standards spanning the continuum of care, basic cancer science, and communication and collaboration
• “How To” guide and templates for implementing a customized program
• Examples from other organizations who have achieved measurable results
• Webcast and journal articles with initiative highlights
         CAREERS IN CANCER SPEAKERS KIT
Nearly all professional disciplines that play a role in the delivery of cancer care are experiencing a shortage. As a part of its efforts to bolster the health workforce, C-Change developed the Careers in Cancer Speaker’s Kit. These presentation tools inspire high school and college students to make a difference through a career in the field of cancer and provide profiles of several career pathways. The toolkit features:
• Video highlights of cancer leaders and students regarding the meaning and opportunities for careers in cancer
• Customizable slide presentation geared toward high school and college students
• Career profiles for a nurse, physician, pharmacist, social worker, researcher, public health worker, and cancer registrar
• Speaker’s guide, presentation handouts, and career resource list
  CANCER SCREENING: PAYER COST/BENEFIT THRU EMPLOYEE BENEFITS PROGRAMS
While strong evidence describes the health benefits of cancer prevention and early detection, little evidence describes the return on investment to employers who provide these services through their health insurance policies. C-Change and the American Cancer Society commissioned Milliman, a consulting and actuarial firm, to analyze the costs and benefits of cancer screening and early detection to employee benefit programs. This landmark paper also describes examples of how employers and insurers can use employee benefit programs effectively to address cancer. Focused on breast, cervical, and colorectal cancers, the study found that cancer prevention and early detection is low cost; the cost of people with cancer is high; and that investment in prevention and early detection makes financial sense.
   CANCER SURVEILLANCE AND INFORMATION SUMMIT II
Better integrating cancer surveillance systems and health information systems has the potential to improve both research and practice. In February 2008, C-Change convened multi-sector leaders at the Cancer Surveillance and Information Summit II to explore ways to further linkages between these important systems. This symposium report provides a summary of the proceedings and highlights specific recommendations on issues such as:
• Transforming registries to make information available at the point of care
• Developing a “Cancer Patients Like Me” website to engage patients in submitting registry data
• Improving the coordination of surveillance and clinical data needs
Additional recommendations are contained in the report and several are currently being championed by C-Change member represented organizations.

    

 ACCESS TO CARE GUIDANCE DOCUMENT
Numerous barriers interfere with access to cancer care such as limited financial resources, insurance, transportation, availability of providers and services, as well as language and culture. C-Change commissioned Strategic Health Concepts, a consulting firm, to author the Access to Care Guidance Document to help Comprehensive Cancer Control (CCC) Coalitions systematically address issues related to assuring timely access to cancer prevention and early detection services and associated follow-up care and treatment services. The document includes:
• Literature summary of actions to improve access
• Ten elements for successful CCC access initiatives with associated examples

Accellerating            
Research       
          

REMOVING BARRIERS TO LARGER NATIONAL INVESTMENT IN CHEMOPREVENTION DRUG DEVELOPMENT
In addition to reducing cancer risk through primary prevention and early detection, preventing cancer and cancer recurrence through drug therapy is an increasingly promising field. However, several major barriers deter the research and business communities from investing time, attention, and funding in chemoprevention research:
• The process for conducting clinical trials and seeking drug approval using new scientific techniques — namely biomarkers — is largely uncharted
• Patent and intellectual property law for preventive drugs and vaccines that require longer clinical trials are too limiting
• Reimbursement for preventive agents is highly uncertain
C-Change published a compendium of papers written by national experts describing the nature of these barriers and feasible solutions to overcome them. The C-Change website contains an executive summary, the full text of these complementary papers, and additional information regarding related advocacy efforts.
    
    		 CLINICAL TRIALS GUIDANCE DOCUMENTS
Clinical trials are a vital part of cancer research and cancer treatment in the U.S. However, several policy and practice barriers hamper patient access to and enrollment in clinical trials. C-Change and the Coalition of Cancer Cooperative Groups commissioned The Lewin Group to develop two guidance documents to address these issues:
• “The Elements of Success: Conducting Cancer Clinical Trials, A Guide”
• “Enhancing Cancer Treatment through Improved Understanding of the Critical
Components, Economics, and Barriers of Cancer Clinical Trials: A Policy-Focused Guidance Document”
The documents provide cancer researchers, clinical trial sites, and policymakers in the public and private sectors with regulatory and functional requirements as well as the costs associated with conducting Phase II and Phase III cancer clinical trials.
Supporting State,
Tribe and Territory Comprehensive
Cancer Control
Efforts
  		STATE, AMERICAN INDIAN/ALASKA NATIVE AND PACIFIC ISLAND JURISDICTIONS COMPREHENSIVE CANCER CONTROL POLICY & PRACTICE SUMMITS REPORTS
Comprehensive Cancer Control coalitions (CCCs) exist in each State and in many Tribes, Territories, and Pacific Island Jurisdictions to reduce the burden of cancer in the unique populations they serve. The CCC National Partnership, of which C-Change is a member, hosted a series of summit meetings to foster advances in cancer control practice and policy as part of their ongoing effort to provide training and technical assistance in support of CCC progress. Proceedings from each summit discuss the priority policy and practice issues and strategies for addressing them:
• 2008 State CCC Policy and Practice Summit
• 2009 American Indian/Alaska Native CCC Policy and Practice Summit
• 2009 Pacific Island Jurisdictions CCC Policy and Practice Summit
  AMERICAN INDIAN/ALASKA NATIVE COMPREHENSIVE CANCER CONTROL POLICY AND PRACTICE SUMMIT 2009
The purpose of the American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) Comprehensive Cancer Control (CCC) Policy and Practice Summit, held June 2009 in Denver, Colorado, was to: (1) engage in a dialogue with elected officials working through the Tribal Consultation Advisory Committee, National Indian Health Board, and CCC Coalitions on identified priority CCC areas and potential policy approaches to address those areas; (2) share and discuss other AI/AN CCC experiences, successful strategies, challenges encountered, and new approaches to affect policy change on identified CCC priority areas; (3) identify the policy approaches that AI/AN Coalition leaders can consider for their own CCC efforts; (4) identify a set of policy-related actions for CCC National Partners to support and assist AI/AN CCC Coalitions to build their capacity affecting policy change; (5) identify a set of policy-related actions for CCC National Partners to address at a national level that support AI/AN CCC Coalitions in their priority policy-related efforts; and (6) provide information on CCC implementation materials that AI/AN CCC Coalitions can use in their implementation efforts of their CCC plans.
  THE SOCIETAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACT OF CANCER HEALTH DISPARITIES
This case statement This case statement describes the societal & economic impact [e.g., Years of Potential Life Lost, etc.] of current cancer morbidity and mortality rates among minority and other disparate populations in the hope that the detailed information and data will help spur a national effort to address cancer health disparities.

To download only the Executive Summary, click here
   TOOLKIT
ENGAGING BUSINESSES IN COMPREHENSIVE CANCER CONTROL COALITIONS: THE VALUE PROPOSITION FOR COMPREHENSIVE CANCER CONTROL
Leaders from all sectors can play an important role in comprehensive cancer control. Business leaders with untapped expertise and resources are often underrepresented in comprehensive cancer control (CCC) coalitions. This Toolkit is designed to support coalitions in analyzing their current membership and identifying and engaging new members from the business (for-profit) community.

State, tribe/tribal organization, territories and Pacific Island Jurisdiction (PIJ) CCC coalitions can use this toolkit to:
• Better understand potential business leaders’ motivations for getting involved in CCC coalition efforts
• Formulate an approach to inviting businesses to become engaged in CCC coalition efforts
• Identify potential roles for businesses that have proven successful in other coalition efforts
• Better understand how to sustain business involvement in the CCC coalition over time