Better Health & Living: Article: Cancer Comfort Online

Better Health & Living

Issue: April 2006

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Cancer Comfort Online

by Eileen Buckholtz

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General Cancer Sites

www.acor.org. This is the main site for the Association of Online Cancer Resources, which provides information, support groups, chats for many kinds of cancer, and links to dozens of cancer groups.
www.acscsn.org. The Cancer Survivor’s Network, sponsored by the American Cancer Society, is an active online community. Free registration allows you to post on the boards, which cover most forms of the disease, including rare types. There’s even a discussion group for adults who had cancer as children. Read inspiring stories from cancer patients and view recent talk shows on related topics.
www.cancercare.org. CancerCare provides free professional support services to people with cancer as well as their caregivers, children, and other family members. Free registration is required to join their numerous peer—and expert—moderated groups. In addition to message boards, there are six-week, instructor-led, online support groups, but there may be a waiting list to sign up for these sessions. The site is available in English and Spanish.
www.chemocare.com. Learn everything you need to know about chemotherapy and beyond on this site, sponsored by the Cleveland Clinic and hosted by Olympic skater and cancer survivor Scott Hamilton. Join the message boards, and be sure to check out the pages where survivors share their stories—and you can share yours. ChemoCare also has an informative “frequently asked questions” section and the latest news on chemotherapy.
www.plwc.org. People Living with Cancer, sponsored by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, is designed to help patients and their families make informed decisions about treatment. The site provides details on different kinds of cancer, online chats with experts on current cancer topics, and discussion boards on more than 30 subjects.
www.thewellnesscommunity.org. This site offers free online support groups, in English and Spanish, for adults with cancer and for caregivers. The sessions are led by professionals.
www.webmd.com. Check out this site’s dozens of message boards, chat room, and live online expert presentations and discussions. The boards are maintained by community moderators; in some cases, health professionals answer postings. There are specific forums for breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer. Registration is required and provides free access to all except subscription services. The site also has a symptom analyzer, health advice, and free newsletters on several cancer topics.

Breast Cancer

www.komen.org. This is the Web site of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, sponsor of the national Komen Race for the Cure. It has active message boards designed for sharing advice and support, with popular topics such as “Sound Off” and “Survivorship.” Bonus: If you register, you get access to “Ask Komen” to check the accuracy of any message.
www.youngsurvival.org. This organization is dedicated to helping young women who have breast cancer, as well as their families. Check out the discussion board, plus a calendar of local events around the country. Membership is free, but the group requests a $25 donation to support its educational and advocacy activities.

Smaller Communities and Groups

If you’re looking for smaller groups, try searching the groups section of the following sites.

Yahoo.com (http://groups.yahoo.com). You’ll find more than 2,400 cancer groups. To use Yahoo’s free resources to start your own support group, just select “start a group” and choose to make it private.
Google.com (http://groups.google.com). On Google Groups, search the archives of more than 140 USENET newsgroups on cancer topics—just type “cancer” in the search box.

Smart Tips

Always check with your doctor about any advice or treatment suggestions you get online.
For the best, most accurate advice, look for groups that have expert moderators.
For privacy’s sake, use a screen name rather than your real name and opt out of sharing your personal information with other members of the community.
Check the dates and frequency of posts on the boards to determine if the community is active. Otherwise, the information may not be current.
Look for additional sources of online information, including free e-mail newsletters and telephone support available from organizations after you sign up at their websites.

Eileen Buckholtz is an Internet consultant, a professor of e-business in the MBA program for the University of Phoenix Online, and author of more than a dozen computer books. She enjoys demystifying the Web for her readers.