Cancer Journeys Foundation Vision
There now are more than 14 million cancer survivors living in the United States and every 19 seconds another person receives a cancer diagnosis and begins their cancer journey.
Most of these survivors have finished their formal medical treatment and are on their own as they move forward into their cancer survivorship period. They face daily fears of cancer recurrence, death, leaving their families behind, and feelings that they are a burden to their families.
Along with these fears come what can seem like insurmountable challenges: knowing what to do to stay healthy; what type of physical activity they can and should do; general feelings of hopelessness; difficulty in setting long-term goals to stay motivated through their survivorship period; and difficulty in visualizing and creating their survivorship future.
Cancer Survivor Goals and Desire
Most of us don’t know how or why we got our cancer, but the universal goal is to be cancer free and to be able to live our lives as we once did, worry-free and with the expectation of a normal life. A life where we aren’t burdens to our families and where we once again are in control of our lives.
Guidelines for Follow-up Survivorship Care
At present, there are no formal guidelines for cancer survivorship care and the medical community recognizes this gap. The Cancer Journeys Foundation attended the inaugural Cancer Survivorship Symposium in San Francisco in January 2016, and developing a survivorship planning process is a key program element for us.
One in every two men is diagnosed with cancer during their lifetime and one in three women. If there is a silver lining in the cancer story, it is that the growing number of cancer survivors, now over 15 million in the United States, means that we are finding ways to extend the lives of cancer survivors. But this growing community brings the need for more support and guidance.
The Cancer Survivor Journey Map
A cancer diagnosis inevitably means a change in life. Futures that seemed so safe, secure, and well-planned suddenly aren’t. Everything becomes confused, jumbled, and filled with emotion. staAt this vulnerable stage cancer survivors need two things: 1) a well-thought-through cancer survivor treatment plan and 2) a structure for thinking about and planning their lives going forward; their Cancer Survivor Journey Map.
Developing a Cancer Journey Map provides a way to think about and structure the future that includes future treatment options, solutions to family issues, and self-help opportunities, all in one integrated plan. The Cancer Journeys Foundation is developing a comprehensive listing of survivor journey mapping resources that will enable cancer survivors and their families to plan for their futures.
By working together, the Cancer Journeys Foundation sees a future . . .
. . . where no one dies from cancer because they didn’t know they had the disease early enough for effective treatment or because they didn’t know what steps they personally could take to keep their cancer at bay,
. . . where every cancer survivor has the information and support they need to develop and implement their unique self-help cancer survivorship plan,
. . . where private industry and volunteers join together to build an enduring network of sports events that will challenge and honor cancer survivors and their caregivers,
. . . where every cancer survivor has the opportunity to come together to compete in athletic events to honor their fighting spirit, to give hope and support to each other, to have a goal to live for, and to remind us that cancer survivors need support and encouragement after their treatment is completed. These are the Cancer Journey Games.®
How You Can Help Cancer Survivors
You can join us and be a part of a community working hard to support our 14 million cancer survivors. You can make a financial contribution to support our programs, you can be part of our event volunteer teams, you can donate an unneeded vehicle, or you might even like to become one of our ambassadors.
Whichever method you choose, your contribution will directly help our cancer survivor community.
Thank you for visiting the Cancer Journeys Foundation website. If you are a cancer survivor or a caregiver, we hope you find the resources you need to support your cancer journey.
Working together we can win our cancer battles.
Warm regards,
Robert Hess
Founder & CEO
Prostate Cancer Survivor
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