AnCan’s founder, Rick Davis, innovated virtual peer-led support groups back in 2010. He recognized the potential of peer advice as the best information a patient could find. AnCan’s 2021 research confirms what Rick knew intuitively.
Neuroscientist Herb Geller PhD, the abstract’s lead author, highlighted the following key research findings,
“Our research indicates that peer-led groups don’t just improve quality of life around the things we can control like diet, exercise and stress. Eighty percent of our participants feel the groups make them better advocates for themselves, and well over 60% take information gleaned back to their healthcare teams.”
While this poster is featured in the Advanced Prostate Cancer track on Feb 17, AnCan is proud of its work to establish the stature of the low risk Active Surveillance (AS) protocol and includes its AS findings.
Co-author and nationally recognized AS Advocate, Howard Wolinsky, said:
“Sixty eight percent of our AS participants told us the Groups made them better advocates and 27% reported lower levels of anxiety – that’s a major difference. Active surveillance is the Rodney Dangerfield of prostate cancer – including our study at GU ASCO recognizes AS patients”
Rick Davis, founder of AnCan and a prostate cancer survivor, says the research demonstrates the power of patient communities on outcomes:
“I realized the power of peer-led support groups from my own treatment. Bringing them to a virtual platform 10 years before anyone had ever heard of COVID-19 and Zoom meetings, made peer support available to those compromised by geographical, physical and social issues. Recognition by GU ASCO is a big step in legitimizing AnCan’s work for all peer-led support.”
Want to make 2022 the best year of your sex life? We’ve got the webinar for you in “Cancer, Chronic Illness, and Intimacy”.
From pleasure with a partner, or just riding solo, nothing is off limits in this webinar featuring sexual medicine rockstar , Dr. Rachel Rubin.
Featuring a panel of patients Dion (lupus), Jimmy (prostate cancer), Kim (multiple sclerosis), and Michael (testicular cancer), and questions from the audience, you’re sure to find answers to your own questions.
AnCan and The Marsh (well renown, long-established theater company with a large following in the Bay Area and venues in San Francisco and Oakland) collaborateevery 4th Wednesday of the month for Solo Arts Heal!
From surviving to thriving to grieving… Award-winning artist and playwright Aoede shared stories, music and films illustrated how creating music and art has been her lifeline during her 14-year journey battling a rare chronic illness.
Watch here:
To SIGN UP for any of our AnCan Virtual Support group reminders, visit our Contact Us page.
Hi-Risk/Recurrent/Advanced PCa Video Chat, Jan 17, 2022
This was the second of our meetings where we reported on the PCF Retreat back in Oct/Nov. Session 2 can be heard at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoFWeGbeGUA, and you can learn about everything from exercise to how your gut microbiomes may impact prostate cancer treatment.
All AnCan’s groups are free and drop-in – join us in person sometime! You can find out more about this and our other 10 monthly prostate cancer groups at https://ancan.org/prostate-cancer/
To sign up to receive a weekly Reminder/Newsletter for this Group or others, go to https://ancan.org/contact-us/
Editor’s Pick: Variant disease is much on my mind, and two of our guys who are likely variant, need help this week. (rd)
Topics Discussed
de novo MX currently under control; Dr. Morgental debunked; treatment controls PCa but not sciatica; cabazitaxel stabilizes disease at PSA of 120 – but is this the right Tx; just turned mCRPC so whats next for likely variant situation; abscopal effect; Provenge and 2nd line HT drugs; docetaxel as a long term option; choose a collaborative GU med onc as your QB; more Provenge – how important is tumor burden; is Quercetin something we need to know about?
Chat Log
Mark Perloe, MD Atlanta (to Everyone): 6:06 PM: Wanted to share that Northside Hospital in Atlanta has recently started Pylarify PET scans and has announced that they will have ViewRay MRI-LINAC
AnCan – rick (to Herb Geller): 6:24 PM: any abi or enz???
Peter Monaco (to Organizer(s) Only): 6:24 PM: Surprised he would get a drug holiday with bone mets present…
Robert McAleese (to Everyone): 6:43 PM: sorry I have to leave for a family emergency
AnCan – rick (to Len Sierra): 6:51 PM: Len – has cabazitaxel been shown to be non-inferior to docetaxel
Julian Morales-Houston (to Everyone): 7:03 PM: www.hopkinsconsults.org – Dr Epstein
Carlos Huerta (to Everyone): 7:04 PM: FYI, Mayo in Phoenix is now doing the PYL PET scan.
Stephen Saft (to Everyone): 7:05 PM: “Thanks for the link to Jonathan Epstein.
Len Sierra (Private): 7:06 PM: Not sure they were ever trialed Head to Head. But cabazi is only approved for 2nd line taxane where docetaxel failed. Of course, docs can prescribe off-label.
Joe Gallo (to Everyone): 7:07 PM: FYI also. Fox Chase CC in Phila is now enrolling for PSAM PET PYL
Carlos Huerta (to Everyone): 7:07 PM: I have to go. Thanks for the summaries.
Joe Gallo (to Everyone): 7:07 PM: PSMA 🙂
AnCan – rick (to Len Sierra): 7:08 PM: K …… I don’t think it is any less effective than docetaxel
Stephen Saft (to Everyone): 7:08 PM: Thanks to Joe Gallo. I knew what you meant.
Chick Lindsay (to Everyone): 7:12 PM: I need to leave tonight’s meeting. Thank you for making the time for me tonight. Thanks for the presentations, and the updates. Chick
Frank Fabish (to Everyone): 7:17 PM: Guys got to leave. This sciatica is killing me.
Len Sierra (to Everyone): 7:21 PM: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33451978/ This is a Phase 2 study of Provenge with or without Xofigo in mCRPC. Conclusion was that the combo was superior to Provenge alone. Bonus finding: PSA50 decline was seen in 31% of patients vs. 0% in monotherapy.
Stephen Saft (to Everyone): 7:48 PM: I am going to say thank you and good night.
Gregg (to Everyone): 7:49 PM: Thanks much everyone. Have to leave. Gregg Nolting.
Michael Chandler (to Everyone): 7:53 PM: Thank you all, best health.
Len Sierra (Private): 7:54 PM: Seems to be in-vitro studies only, but is interesting. Not in the clinic.
Herb Geller (to Everyone): 7:55 PM: Those papers are not from NIH. They are from research groups in China and Atlanta. They are very basic science papers. Quercetin has been the subject of investigation for some time.
Mike Phillips & Tomi (to Everyone): 7:55 PM: Thank you!
Cal Van Zee (to Everyone): 7:56 PM: logging off now. Positive throughts to everyone.
AnCan and The Marsh (well renown, long-established theater company with a large following in the Bay Area and venues in San Francisco and Oakland) collaborateevery 4th Wednesday of the month for Solo Arts Heal!
On December 22nd, we closed out our 2021 season of Solo Arts Heal with Alex Kaplan! (and on that note, we have even more fun to come in 2022!)
Alex, a Philadelphia native and LA transplant, was trained as an actor in the University of Miami’s conservatory and transitioned to a career behind the camera as a producer and director for the past decade.
Today, Alex is the Co-founding Executive Director & Chief Vision Officer at Of Substance (OfSubstance.org), an innovative non-profit revolutionizing addiction and mental health treatment, education, and support, using premium entertaining short films as a tool for deeper healing, growth, and transformation.
After surviving his own battles with addiction, Alex recognized the power of story as a tool in his recovery and found an exciting way to use his filmmaking experience to help others on their paths of overcoming struggles of shame & isolation. The biggest thing he learned on his journey is that his issue was far less about using substances than it was about WHY he used substances; It was about shame, isolation, a fear of not belonging, and a fear of not being good enough.
Alex and his co-founder Brian Gallagher built Of Substance to help us all recognize that we’re not alone in these feelings and to positively transform people’s relationships with themselves, others, and their beliefs in what’s possible.
“Our film “Trapped” is not simply for those of us who struggle with substance use, it’s for all of us who feel trapped sometimes. Hopefully Trapped will help us all better empathize with one another, recognizing and relating to the feeling and experience. This film helped my mother stop asking me “Why can’t you stop drinking?” and finally move our conversation forward to “I see you, I love you, I’m with you.” Our hopes are that this film can do that for you and your loved ones as well.” – Alex
Watch the performance here:
To SIGN UP for any of our AnCan Virtual Support group reminders, visit our Contact Us page.
