Guam Cancer Care gets $400K from Guam Cancer Trust Fund

GUAM-The University of Guam announced yesterday the awarding of a $400,000 supplemental grant award to Guam Cancer Care, an official 501c3 non-profit organization. Guam Cancer Care’s mission is to provide direct support services to Guam cancer patients, in the form of patient navigation and advocacy, as well as financial assistance needed by these individuals to access much-needed cancer treatment. This cash infusion will sustain key direct cancer support programs that will benefit many Guam cancer patients for the remainder of fiscal year.

According to Guam Cancer Care’s executive director Terry Cuabo, Guam Cancer Care’s Patient Navigation program has assisted over 122 residents afflicted by cancer over the past six months, by bringing in over $702,448 in external resources, to include but not limited to; low to no-cost chemotherapy drugs or direct financial assistance for eligible Guam cancer patients from stateside organizations such as Cancercare.org, Patient Advocacy Foundation, Prescription Solutions, Genentech Access Solutions, Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy, and Celgene Specialty Pharmacy, to name a few. In addition to providing patient navigation to Guam cancer patients, the awarding of this supplemental funding has enabled Guam Cancer Care to issue out financial assistance awards to 41 eligible cancer patients totaling $125,035.69. These financial assistance awards will help cover the costs of cancer treatment for patients.

The Guam Cancer Trust Fund, under the purview of the University of Guam, is established by Public Law 30-80 which redirects 15 percent of all tobacco taxes generated within the territory be deposited into its account. The funds are used exclusively to provide direct support services for Guam cancer patients.

UOG president Robert A. Underwood commends Guam Cancer Care for being a proactive partner in serving those individuals coping with cancer. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with Guam Cancer Care. Together we can provide much needed assistance to people coping with this disease!”

Cuabo states: “We are extremely grateful to the University of Guam for awarding this supplemental budget to our organization as it will allow us to sustain some of our key programs throughout the remainder of the fiscal year. We look forward to working collaboratively with the university in continuing to provide these critical support services to many Guam cancer patients afflicted by cancer. I encourage our island community to assist in spreading the word about what Guam Cancer Care does. At the same time, we encourage all Guam residents afflicted by this deadly disease to reach out and contact us so that we can assist them through this delicate and sensitive process, which ties in to the Guam Cancer Care core mission, which is to help save lives, one person at a time! ”

For further information regarding Guam Cancer Care’s programs, contact their office at 969-2223 or visit them at their website at www.guamcancercare.org. (UOG)