For Immediate Release
May 21, 2008

 Deborah Pettibone (716) 845-8593
Roswell Park Cancer Institute

Karen Merkel-Liberatore (716) 887-8811
BlueCross BlueShield WNY

 
BUFFALO, NY- Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) is one of five centers in New York State, and only 84 nationwide, to be designated a Blue Distinction^® Center for Complex and Rare Cancers by the BlueCross BlueShield Association (BCBSA).

The designation is the result of a strategic collaboration among BCBSA, BlueCross BlueShield of WNY and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), of which RPCI is a founding member.

The program focuses on providing information to patients who have complex, aggressive or rare cancers to help support their decision making. Complex and rare cancers comprise approximately 15 percent of new cancer cases each year, and it is often difficult for patients to locate or research facilities with oncology teams experienced in treating these specific types of cancers.

Roswell Park has met or exceeded the following criteria required to be designated a Blue Distinction^® Center:

• Offering cancer care using a multidisciplinary team approach, including subspecialty-trained teams for complex and rare cancers with demonstrated depth of expertise across cancer disciplines in medicine, surgery, radiation oncology, pathology and radiology
• Having sufficient volume of experience in treating rare and complex cancers
• Providing ongoing quality management and improvement programs for cancer care
• Demonstrating an ongoing commitment to using clinical data registries and providing access to appropriate clinical research for complex and rare cancers.

“The designation as a Blue Distinction^® Center recognizes Roswell Park’s ongoing commitment to provide the highest quality of care for patients diagnosed with complex and rare cancers,” said Donald L. Trump, MD, FACP, President & CEO, Roswell Park Cancer Institute. “Roswell Park is leading the way in delivering better overall outcomes based on ever-evolving definitions of evidence-based medicine.”   

“While there is nothing we would like more than for research, diagnosis and treatment of cancer to become obsolete, as long as cancer continues to be a part of life, having Roswell Park Cancer Institute available to the people of Western New York and the world is critical to our health and well-being,” said Alphonso O’Neil-White, president & CEO of BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York. “For our Blue members and everyone who needs to find specialized care for the very specific range of cancers identified as ‘rare and complex,’ Roswell Park’s designation lets them know that they will receive the very best care available.”

“As a Blue Distinction^® Center, Roswell Park is participating in an exciting new paradigm designed to provide vital information to patients as they make decisions about their cancer care,” said Stephen B. Edge, MD, Chair, Department of Breast Surgery at Roswell Park, and an expert advisor to the NCCN initiative. “The bottom line is that patients benefit when cancer centers, insurers and institutions such as NCCN work regionally and nationally to define, measure and deliver the very best quality care.”

“A patient’s need for care continues long after their cancer treatment ends, and Roswell’s designation ensures that care will be coordinated with local physicians, their families, and their local health plans, wherever they may be” said Jay I. Pomerantz, MD, chief medical officer/senior vice president, BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York.   “The level of dedication to comprehensive care, continuous learning and research and exceptional quality demonstrated by Roswell Park ensures the best results for the patients.”

BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York is a division of HealthNow New York Inc., one of New York’s leading healthcare companies that provides quality healthcare and innovative solutions for members throughout Upstate New York. Headquartered in Buffalo, NY, the Company’s revenues exceeded $2.14 billion in 2007. BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York is an independent licensee of the BlueCross BlueShield Association.

Roswell Park Cancer Institute, founded in 1898, is the nation’s first cancer research, treatment and education center and is the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center in Upstate New York. RPCI is a member of the prestigious National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an alliance of the nation’s leading cancer centers. Roswell Park has affiliate sites and collaborative programs both nationally and internationally. For more information, visit RPCI’s website at www.roswellpark.org, call 1-877-ASK-RPCI (1-877-275-7724) or e-mail askrpci@roswellpark.org.

 

-30-