By the end of this year, 5,900 Idaho residents will have been diagnosed with some form of cancer. To help those individuals deal with their cancer experience from diagnosis and possible surgery to treatments and recovery, the American Cancer Society has developed a Cancer Resource Center Program. In the upcoming months, the American Cancer Society and Gritman Medical Center will be providing cancer resource information and support through its new American Cancer Society Gritman Cancer Resource Center.

The Cancer Resource Center has the goal of providing information about specific cancers, community service and educational programs offered by the American Cancer Society, and resources available in the Palouse area. The Resource Center will be open to all cancer patients, their families, caregivers, and the general public.

The American Cancer Society has been developing cancer resource centers nationwide for the past several years, but this will be the first of its kind in Latah County.

A cancer resource center is a site typically located within a cancer treatment center with the goal being that of providing patients, family members, caregivers, and the public with information about cancer, programs offered by the American Cancer Society as well as available community resources. It is designed to be a safe, friendly, and confidential place for those interested in obtaining much needed information that is unbiased, current, and culturally sensitive in nature.

The facility will be entirely volunteerstaffed by trained individuals from around the Palouse area. While the volunteers will not be trained medical personnel, they will have access to up-to-date medical information and the newest treatment options. They will also be trained to navigate the American Cancer Society web site and the society’s community resource database. Volunteers must also be good listeners and have basic computer skills or the desire to learn. Those selected will then be interviewed, go through a background check, and have six to eight hours of initial training.

Cancer researchers continue to make tremendous progress in the battle to save or extend the lives of those diagnosed with this disease, which means Americans are being given a wide spectrum of choices when it comes to their surgical or treatment options. The cancer resource centers allow all cancer patients and the public to have access to a wide variety of cancer services, programs, assistance, and the ability to research questions they may have during their cancer journey.

Funding from annual events such as Relay For Life, are responsible in large part for the society’s many programs, scholarships, cancer resource centers,and ongoing cancer research.

Without the generous support we have been receiving from individuals, organizations, and businesses in northern Idaho, we wouldn’t be able to fund even a fraction of what we are presently able to offer. Equally important are the generous volunteers who give their time to support the programs in Moscow, Pullman, and the surrounding areas.

We are still looking for more volunteers. We are hoping to have the center open from nine to five, Monday through Friday, but the schedule will depend on the number of trained volunteers as well as the hours the volunteers are available.

For more information or to volunteer for the Gritman Medical Center Cancer Resource Center or any American Cancer Society program, contact Debi Dockins, Director of Gritman Volunteer Services at (208) 883-5520 or by email at debi.dockins@ gritman.org or Cynthia Rozyla toll-free at 1-800-537-7710, option 3 or crozyla@cancer.org.