December 6, 2005
Feinberg Project, Armstrong Foundation Form Partnership
CHICAGO—The Education in Palliative and End-of-Life Care (EPEC) for Oncology Project, based at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine, and the Lance Armstrong Foundation have formed a national partnership to improve communication between health care professionals and cancer survivors.
Linda Emanuel, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and director of the Buehler Center on Aging, heads the EPEC Project and has been named principal investigator on the EPEC for Oncology Project.
The original EPEC Project was designed to be a high-impact, wide-dissemination, train-the-trainer educational program to provide core palliative care skills to practicing physicians of all specialties in the United States and through them to other medical professionals.
The EPEC for Oncology Project was adapted for oncologists with funds from the National Cancer Institute.
In collaboration with the Lance Armstrong Foundation, the EPEC for Oncology Project will educate survivors and caregivers about cancer survivorship issues from the point of diagnosis through long-term treatment effects and end-of-life care.
The EPEC for Oncology Project also will develop educational materials to help facilitate a positive, proactive role and relationship between patients and health care teams. Cancer survivors and caregivers in the Chicago area will be recruited to participate in focus groups to aid in the development of educational materials.
To help meet the needs of people affected by cancer, the Lance Armstrong Foundation National Partnerships Program offers a coordinated, comprehensive approach that is aligned with the priorities established in the National Action Plan for Cancer Survivorship: Advancing Public Health Strategies.
The Lance Armstrong Foundation serves its mission through advocacy, public health, and research. Founded in 1997 by cancer survivor and champion cyclist Lance Armstrong, the LAF is located in Austin, Texas.