The Case for Grace

What is the Global Resource for Advancing Cancer Education (GRACE)?

GRACE is a nonprofit organization that we developed out of a commitment to improve the care that cancer patients receive by teaching patients and their families about their cancer and the best treatments. We can conquer the fear of the unknown by providing expert answers to questions directly from cancer patients and their families. Even with good oncology training, a general cancer physician can’t be an expert in every type of cancer. We don’t intend to replace your doctors - instead, we are experts in our own specialized corner of oncology, and we spend much of our lives on a narrow focus of a particular cancer. Now you and everyone who needs it can have free access to the latest information from experts on a particular cancer or aspect of oncology care. In addition to information about different types of cancer, we’ll provide expertise on topics that cut across cancer types, like radiation oncology, oncology social work, and complementary medicine.

While there is other information on the internet, this isn’t a static site with vague recommendations written by committee. We haven’t found there to be any other source for constantly updated, interactive, and expert-mediated discussion of the details of cancer management.

What will you find here?

Helpful information is available in many forms. For each topic here, there is a site for recent posts that is regularly updated by the faculty, along with archives of prior posts arranged by date and subject. Members can also post comments and questions after each post. In the forum section for each topic, members can leave questions or comments that will be addressed by the faculty and potentially other members here. Each topic also includes subject specific list of Other Resources and Audio-Visual Content (developed as funding permits).

All of this information is searchable, allowing you to find information you require whenever you need it.

In addition, our site includes a chat room function, for which there are scheduled Q&A Events, or members can use it for communicating in real time.

We are starting from a core expertise in lung cancer, with additional information about the basics of cancer for the general public, oncology social work, and radiation oncology. We plan to broaden our educational offerings to other cancer topics as our support allows.

We also hope to add more features over time, as technology and financial support allows. We want to grow in order to continue to accommodate the needs of the cancer community. If you have an idea, please contact us.

Who provides the information?

GRACE provides cancer information from a limited and hand-selected core group of experts in their field who can provide balanced information based on the available clinical evidence. They are the Faculty of Appointed Clinical Experts, or the FACE of GRACE. We provide basic biographical information on their training and qualifications so you can know the source of our recommendations. Whenever possible, we’ll support our interpretation based on the evidence from clinical trials, but we will also provide judgment and balanced commentary. The recommendations are the opinions of one expert, and you may agree or disagree, just as the experts don’t always agree. But we will always strive to be balanced and credible: if you can’t trust our recommendations, we have failed.

We welcome questions, comments, and objections. Much of the information here is also provided on an ongoing basis by other members, based on your own experiences and discoveries.

Why register as a member?

You don’t win prizes, or even learn a secret handshake by becoming a member. In fact, you can access most of the information on the website without registering. But members can sign up for live teaching events as they are offered, and only members can leave posts or receive e-mail notifications of new materials. This is a community, enriched by group participation. At its best, members learn about each other and from each other. We have also found that they come to care about each other. This isn’t a static, anonymous book. It’s a growing, dynamic place populated by real people you can come to know. And everyone has something useful to contribute.

How is GRACE supported?

Oh, yeah — we thought you’d never ask. When we say “everyone has something useful to contribute”, we weren’t just talking about your questions and insights. GRACE is a nonprofit that depends on support from grateful users. We seek charitable grants from foundations and corporate sponsors, but we need your help. All of the following can be added as funding permits:

• new formats for educational programs (audio programs, online lectures, case-based panel discussions)
• additional expert faculty
• novel programs (live conferences, CD-ROM lecture materials, and more)

The Global Resource for Advancing Cancer Education (GRACE) is a non-profit organization, for which 501(c)(3) status from the IRS is pending. We will very happily provide our Tax Identification Number to all donors as soon as it is granted.

We will do everything we can to create the best educational resource on cancer for the general public. Your contribution will increase our offerings and help more people. Please support the cause.