Blog

Meet Our Intern: Introducing Abigail McCarthy

Hello, I am Abigail McCarthy, a fourth-year student at the College of Public Health at the University of Iowa. I am grateful to be interning at the Iowa Cancer Consortium this summer. Here, I plan to grow my experience and knowledge within the cancer world. Diagnosed with thyroid cancer my freshmen year of college, I…

Adapting Colorectal Cancer Screening to a Post-COVID-19 World

By: Kelly DiAllesandro COVID-19 has upended projects, conferences, and strategic plans for healthcare providers all over the country. As staff are redirected toward COVID-related work like testing and contact tracing, patients with other conditions could be left behind. For those with chronic conditions, this could be disastrous. COVID-19 also distracts from preventive work that providers,…

“Emerging” Public Health Threat: Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals

By: Audrey E. Tran Lam, MPH During all of the downtime I’ve recently discovered in the face of this global pandemic, I’ve finally finished the book Our Stolen Future, written by Theo Colburn, Dianne Dumanoski, and John Peterson Myers back in 1997. The topic of endocrine disrupting (or, hormonally active) chemicals has been on my…

All of Me: Prioritizing Sexual Health for Iowans Impacted by Cancer

By: Erin Sullivan Wagner, Cancer Survivor In 2016, After Cancer, Solutions for Sexual Health, received a grant for a project called “All of Me: Prioritizing Sexual Health in Iowans Impacted by Cancer,” funded through the Iowa Cancer Consortium and Iowa Department of Public Health. In short, the project’s goal is to develop and implement self-sustaining…

Mourning the Passing of Gail Orcutt

With extreme gratitude, the Iowa Cancer Consortium Board of Directors and staff remember our longtime friend and colleague, Gail Orcutt. We also recognize her extraordinary contribution to radon-control advocacy and cancer control in Iowa. Gail was a member of the Iowa Cancer Consortium for nearly ten years. Additionally, she was a founding member of the…

Announcing: COVID-19 Cancer Patient Transportation and Lodging Initiative

A few weeks ago, we asked our partners to share their needs related to cancer and the emerging threat of coronavirus. We listened, and heard transportation support for cancer patients undergoing treatment during this time was a big need. In alignment with the Consortium’s mission and contract with the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH),…

Tips for Social Distancing Outdoors

By: Anne Abbott Physical activity has been linked with a range of benefits to physical and mental health.  One of the benefits most recognized by Iowa Cancer Consortium members is that regular physical activity has been found to decrease risk for a range of different cancers including highly prevalent cancers like breast and colorectal. This…

Coronavirus and Cancer

By: Virginia Barrette, MHA, American Cancer Society I’m not sure about everyone else, but I’ve spent a lot of time over the past few weeks thinking about the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s everywhere–social media, the nightly news, and in conversations with loved ones. As many of our lives have been disrupted, the impact is much greater…

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

By: Kelly Hendershot, LMSW, LSW Throughout the month of March, you’re likely to see people wearing blue in support of those diagnosed with colorectal cancer, as well as social media campaigns using poop emojis. You’ll most definitely hear a lot about the importance of getting your colonoscopy, at what age to do so and even…

2020 ACS CAN Iowa Day at the Capitol Recap

By: Bridget Toomey, MS, CPC On Wednesday February 5, 2020, 75 advocates took to the steps of the Iowa State Capitol to speak to their representatives about cancer policy. Advocates, including many Iowa Cancer Consortium members, came from around the state to team up with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), the…