For Immediate Release
June 10, 2009

BUFFALO, NY – As America’s 12 million cancer survivors observe the 22nd annual National Cancer Survivors Day®, Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) takes the celebration in an exciting, new direction with the launch of an online cancer survivors community.

A specially designed website – myRoswellPark.com – allows patients, their families and friends to easily share stories, photos, videos and more. Knowledge, hope and inspiration can be found in every story. The interactive online community offers new connections among cancer survivors fostering relationships that can last a lifetime.

“Cancer survivors and their families face each day with courage and dignity and serve as an inspiration to all of us,” said Donald L. Trump, MD, President & CEO, RPCI. “Each cancer survivor has a story to share when the time is right. Through myRoswellPark.com, survivors from across Western New York can candidly talk about their lives since a cancer diagnosis and what survivorship means to them.”

A survivor is anyone living with or beyond cancer. A cancer diagnosis may lead to a change in a person’s priorities regarding relationships, career or lifestyle. Some survivors talk about appreciating life more and gaining a greater acceptance of self. These survivors will be the first to say that cancer patients can and do live a fulfilling life after a cancer diagnosis.

Patients will receive a free T-shirt, while supplies last, when they contribute their stories to myroswellpark.com or mail to Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Elm & Carlton Streets, Buffalo, NY, 14263, Attention: Department of Public Affairs.

Roswell Park provides care for a large number of cancer survivors, especially those patients who continue to receive follow-up supportive care after they complete active cancer therapy. The RPCI Survivorship Steering Committee is committed to enhancing and expanding needed services that will support survivors as they move away from their initial diagnosis. Survivors may have unique problems, such as difficulty in finding employment, questions concerning their reproductive ability, and the possibility of developing other malignancies later in life. To improve the quality of life of cancer survivors, Roswell Park offers survivorship resources and research at Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

The mission of Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) is to understand, prevent and cure cancer. RPCI, founded in 1898, was one of the first cancer centers in the country to be named a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center and remains the only facility with this designation in Upstate New York. The Institute is a member of the prestigious National Comprehensive Cancer Network, an alliance of the nation’s leading cancer centers; maintains affiliate sites; and is a partner in national and international collaborative programs. For more information, visit RPCI’s website at http://www.roswellpark.org, call 1-877-ASK-RPCI (1-877-275-7724) or email askrpci@roswellpark.org.

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