Patient Education Library
This wide range of information is given to you from Roswell Park experts and trusted organizations that specialize in this area of healthcare.
We understand the worry and confusion that come with a diagnosis of cancer. In addition to superior medical care and the latest technology, Roswell Park provides a comprehensive range of services to help you cope with the emotional, financial and day-to-day concerns related to your illness.
When you walk through the doors of Roswell Park, rest assured that you’ll find the care and support you need — before, during and after your cancer treatment.
View all of our support services
Advance Blood Draw
Reduce the time you spend waiting at your next scheduled appointment — get your lab work and radiology tests done in advance. Roswell Park offers various lab work locations! Choose from three Roswell Park locations, or take advantage of our partnership with Catholic Health System, which allows you to select from three additional suburban locations. Schedule now in your Care Center or call 1-800-ROSWELL (1-800-767-9355).
Assessment and Treatment Center
The Roswell Park Assessment and Treatment Center (ATC) is a patient care service that supports our current patients when they are sick with urgent, but non-life threatening symptoms during the day and when our clinics are closed. It is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including holidays.
The ATC is not an emergency room and it does not accept walk-ins. To be seen in the ATC, you must be referred by your Roswell Park physician or the physician-on-call.
If you are experiencing non-life threatening symptoms, you should first call your Roswell Park clinic. If your clinic is closed, call Roswell Park at 716-845-2300 to be evaluated by a Triage Nurse. As always, in the case of a life-threatening emergency, you should always dial 911.
Communication in All Languages
Patients who do not speak English or who would prefer to speak a language other than English have easy access to interpreters. Roswell Park contracts with the Language Line, a phone service that provides professional interpretation by certified medical interpreters in more than 170 languages, 24 hours a day.
Non-English-speaking patients can access Language Line services by making arrangements through any member of their health care team or, if off-campus, by calling Roswell Park’s Cancer Information Program at 1-800-ROSWELL (1-800-767-9355), available seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Genetic Assessment, Testing and Counseling
The Clinical Genetics Service was established to meet the needs of individuals at high risk for hereditary cancer syndromes based on their personal and/or family histories of cancer. This program is comprised of professionals who provide individuals and their families with a comprehensive, personalized cancer risk evaluation — based on the most timely, accurate information available — in a caring, confidential setting. Call 1-800-ROSWELL (1-800-767-9355) for more information.
Nutrition
Good nutrition is especially important while you are receiving cancer care. During your treatment, adequate intake of calories, protein, vitamins and minerals will help you to be strong, maintain your weight, and promote the healing process. Before and after your treatment, a healthy diet based on moderation, variety and balance will help to promote a good immune system, give you energy, and enhance your overall health. Our Nutrition and Food Service team is dedicated to providing nourishing meals and nutrition care to promote quality of life throughout the spectrum of your cancer care experience.
Group seminars are available on a variety of topics including eating during cancer treatment, healthy eating and cancer-related fatigue.
Pain Management
Of all the side effects of cancer, pain is most feared by patients. Unfortunately, this fear is not without grounds. Approximately 60 percent to 90 percent of patients with advanced cancer report significant pain, and one-third state that it interferes with daily activity. The truth is that 90 percent of all cancer-related pain can be alleviated, eliminated or significantly reduced by available means.
How should you determine the quality of a cancer pain management program? Look at the stats. Eighty-five percent of patients who receive treatment at Roswell Park report “very” and “totally” successful outcomes in controlling or eliminating their pain after three months. According to our pain management doctors, there have been no patient reports of Roswell Park interventions being either “not successful” or “mildly successful,” and our patients have had substantially lower hospital stays than similar patients at other comprehensive cancer centers.
Patient Advisory Council
Created in 2012, Roswell Park’s Patient Advisory Council represents a “culture change” in the way the hospital operates and how it receives feedback from our patients. Patients who join the advisory council become involved with every level of care and are invited to take a hard look at the services and procedures in place at Roswell Park, then provide suggestions for how to make improvements.
If you are interested in joining the Patient Advisory Council, please call Roswell Park’s Department of the Patient and Family Experience at 716-845-8114.
Social Support & Guidance
Our team of social workers and clinical psychologists work side by side with your medical team to provide individualized assistance and support to you and your family throughout the course of care. Services include:
- Educational programs about cancer
- Emotional support, including support groups and psychotherapy
- Assistance with sick leave and disability
- Arrangement of lodging, transportation or language/interpreter needs
- Linkage with financial assistance programs and other community resources
- Assistance with advance care planning, palliative care and/or hospice referrals as needed
Family Support
We extend our services to relatives and caregivers, offering emotional support as well as assistance with all of the practical considerations necessary to care for someone undergoing cancer treatment.
Family members are welcome to attend support group meetings or they may take advantage of private consultations with our Psychosocial Oncology team by calling 716-845-8022. Consultations are free and confidential.
Purple Shirts
The American Cancer Society and Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center worked together to create a healthcare hospitality program that connects patients and their families with cancer survivors. Dressed in purple shirts, these dedicated volunteers visit clinics throughout the Roswell Park hospital, bringing compassion, understanding, and practical information about Roswell Park resources and supportive services. If you don’t see a Purple Shirt in your clinic and would like to speak to someone, please visit The Resource Center for Patients and Families at Roswell Park, or call the Office of Patient and Family Experience at 716-845-8114.
Smoking Cessation
Roswell Park Cessation Services (RPCS) provides evidence-based, best practice tobacco cessation services to Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center employees, state quitlines, healthplans, and employer sponsored programs.
New York State Smokers’ Quitline
Based at Roswell Park and supported by the New York State Department of Health Tobacco Control Program, the NYS Smokers' Quitline has logged well over one million calls since its inception. Call 1-866-NY-QUITS (1-866-697-8487). Roswell Park was the first health care facility in Western New York to go entirely smoke-free.
Other Resources and Information
Cancer Connect: To expand care beyond the hospital’s walls and hours of operation, Roswell Park has launched an online community for people affected by cancer. Cancer Connect is intended as both a source of information for patients, family members and caregivers and a 24/7 extension of the support networks that are a crucial resource for those affected by cancer. Visit the Cancer Connect website to register.
Data Bank and BioRepository: The Data Bank and BioRepository (DBBR) is a large database of information from patients and healthy individuals that may help us understand why some people get cancer and others do not. It may help shed light on the roles of lifestyle, genetics and environment in cancer; and explain why some patients do better with certain treatments. Participants must be over 18 and give a blood sample. Call 716-845-7774 to speak with a staff member and/or schedule an appointment. All information is confidential.
High Risk Clinics: Individuals at high risk for certain cancers like lung/mesothelioma, breast and ovarian may participate in the high risk program to receive state-of-the art screening and diagnostic services, early or preventative treatment and surveillance.
The Office of Cancer Health Disparities: The Office of Cancer Health Disparities proactively identifies and addresses disparities in vulnerable and medically underserved populations and patients. Its programs include efforts to increase cancer awareness, screening and treatment among medically underserved or uninsured populations like Latino or African American, Arab immigrants and Native Americans. For information, call 716-845-4557 or email Terry.Alford@roswellpark.org.
The 11 Day Power Play Cancer Resource Center: The 11 Day Power Play Cancer Resource Center provides information and expertise to patients, their families and the public. Cancer information specialists are uniquely qualified to help locate, evaluate the overwhelming amount of online information — from searching the National Library of Medicine’s MEDLINE® database to finding information on clinical trials. Trained cancer information specialists use easy-to-understand terms to explain medical information and provide each visitor with a thorough and personalized experience. Free wigs are also available through the Resource Center for Patients and Families. For more information, call 716-845-8659.
Roswell Park's Amherst Center: The Amherst Center (100 College Parkway in Amherst, New York) provides both chemotherapy infusion and specific types of clinical care, including care for lung cancer patients, in a beautiful and comfortable setting. With 20 chemotherapy chairs, eight examination rooms, and three nurses’ stations, the facility was designed specifically to reduce both wait times and travel time for residents living in the northeast suburbs of Buffalo.
Social Media: Follow Roswell Park on Facebook and Twitter for up-to-the-minute updates on events, services and other relevant information.
Additional Resources
For more information from the National Cancer Institute about malignant mesothelioma, see the following:
Malignant Mesothelioma Home PageDrugs Approved for Malignant MesotheliomaAsbestos Exposure and Cancer Risk
Or contact:
American Cancer SocietyCancerBACKUP: Mesothelioma Information CentreMesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, Inc.