Georgia CORE helps fight against cancer

4/21/2015, Brad McEwen, The Albany Herald

ALBANY — One of the many ways the Georgia Center for Oncology Research and Education (CORE) is helping cancer patients and their families deal with a cancer diagnosis is through various statewide partnerships that help offer a variety of programs and services.

#Members of the Kiwanis Club of Dougherty County learned a little more about what the statewide nonprofit organization is doing in the fight against cancer when Georgia CORE President and CEO Nancy Paris gave a brief overview of its purpose and programs Monday.

#Paris explained that the organization was founded thanks to funds generated by Georgia’s tobacco settlement for the purpose of creating a network that would improve the quality of life for Georgians dealing with a cancer diagnosis and to help physicians and other health care professionals to work together to improve cancer research and treatment.

#“Leading doctors come together to talk about new and effective treatments and conduct research to discuss quality initiative and share what’s working and what they can do together to improve the quality of care for patients,” said Paris.

#Along with that improved dialogue, the state has also improved it’s research efforts which has greatly benefited cancer patients throughout the state, thanks to things like clinical trials, Paris said.

#“Clinical trials are the way that we discover new and promising cancer treatments and this is how we’ve learned to do a better job taking care of all kinds of cancer,” said Paris. “In Georgia today we have over 650 clinical trials that are available for all types of cancer.”

#Paris added that Georgia CORE also provides what’s known as “navigation services” to cancer survivors, where they can find important information about dealing with or helping a loved one deal with a cancer diagnosis, including where to find support groups, where to purchase a wig and how to get transportation to and from treatments.

#The organization also works with local organizations like the Cancer Coalition of South Georgia to provide services throughout the state. One of the ways Georgia CORE is able to do that is through Breast Cancer License Tag program that allows residents to purchase a breast cancer license plate.

#Paris said that for each tag that is purchased $22 goes toward a fund for women who are at risk of getting or who already have breast cancer, which is something that has directly benefited south Georgia.

#“This fund provides mammography services here in your community,” said Paris. “There’s a grant program, that we administer and this year the South Georgia Cancer Coalition got an award for $50,000 to help women right here locally who would not have access to breast cancer screening.”

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