NCCN publishes new easy-to-understand patient education resources focused on brain cancer

Jan 10 2017

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) has published the NCCN Guidelines for Patients® and NCCN Quick Guide™ sheets for Brain Cancer - Gliomas—the first in a series of patient education resources focused on Brain Cancer. Published by NCCN through support of the NCCN Foundation®, and, in part through funding from NCCN Foundation's Team Pound the Pavement for Patients, these resources inform patients about their disease and the treatment options available to them.

"Access to new, easy-to-understand treatment information for patients with Brain Cancer empowers these patients to make informed decisions about their care. We are excited to present the new NCCN Guidelines for Patients - Gliomas and look forward to publication of the entire Brain Cancer Series," said Marcie R. Reeder, MPH, Executive Director, NCCN Foundation.

Support from NCCN Foundation's Team Pound the Pavement for Patients was donated in honor of Melanie Moletzsky, an employee of NCCN who was diagnosed with Anaplastic Astrocytoma—a type of Glioma—in 2015. During her time in treatment—nearly two years—Ms. Moletzsky learned a lot about living with brain cancer and the side effects of the disease and its treatment. She shares her insights in the new NCCN Guidelines for Patients®: Brain Cancer - Gliomas.

These resources are available free of charge on NCCN.org/patients, as well as on the free NCCN Patient Guides for Cancer mobile app, available for Android and iOS devices. NCCN plans to publish additional patient resources focusing on other forms of Brain Cancer in the future.

"NCCN Foundation is incredibly grateful to Melanie for sharing her survivorship story, as well as her insight for patients who are living with brain cancer. Her experience indeed will be inspiring for others and complements the invaluable guidance provided by NCCN's expert physicians," said Ms. Reeder.

NCCN Guidelines for Patients, patient-friendly translations of the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines®), are easy-to-understand resources based on the same clinical practice guidelines used by health care professionals around the world to determine the best way to treat a patient with cancer. Each resource features unbiased expert guidance from the nation's leading cancer centers designed to help people living with cancer talk with their physicians about the best treatment options for their disease.

NCCN Guidelines for Patients and NCCN Quick Guide™ sheets—one-page summaries of key points in the patient guidelines—are written in plain language and include patient-friendly elements, such as questions to ask your doctor, a glossary of terms, and medical illustrations of anatomy, tests, and treatment. NCCN Guidelines for Patients and NCCN Quick Guide™ sheets DO NOT replace the expertise and clinical judgment of the clinician.

NCCN currently offers NCCN Guidelines for Patients for the following: Brain, Breast, Colon, Esophageal, Kidney, Non-Small Cell Lung, Ovarian, Pancreatic, Prostate, and Stomach Cancers; Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer; Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia; Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Hodgkin Lymphoma; Lung Cancer Screening; Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma; Melanoma; Multiple Myeloma; Nausea and Vomiting; Non-Hodgkin's Lymphomas; and Soft Tissue Sarcoma.

Source: National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®)