American Cancer Society Launches New and Improved Website

The American Cancer Society recently announced there-launch ofits website, www.cancer.org, with a broadrange of new features, including personalized content, interactive healthplanning tools, and online discussion groups.

"When you face a cancer diagnosis, it can be a devastatingexperience," said David S. Rosenthal, MD, volunteer chairman of theAmerican Cancer Society’s Health Content Advisory Group. "It can feellike the most lonely time of your life. We wanted to use the power of theInternet to help people connect—with one another and with the American CancerSociety—in order to help people realize they are not alone in thisfight."

An Evolving Effort

The new site evolved over nearly 2 years using feedback fromcancer patients, families, and leading scientific researchers and health-careprofessionals. It was designed to provide people with the tools to make theirown personal decisions about cancer treatment, and to help them cope with cancerin their lives. Visitors will have access to a wide range of American CancerSociety services and information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

Among the many interactive tools offered by the website arepersonal planners that keep track of doctor’s appointments and hospitalvisits, health risk assessment tools, and cancer treatment decision and supportresources. "We wanted to make cancer.org a true interactive resource thatputs the power of personalized information in the hands of our users," saidTerry M. Music, strategic business manager for cancer information at theAmerican Cancer Society National Home Office and herself a cancer survivor."As everyone’s experience with cancer is different, so is the kind ofinformation they seek when they come to our site. From that standpoint, wedesigned cancer.org so that it could be customized to fit each individual person’sneeds."

In addition to the new look and feel, cancer.orghas beenempowered with improved navigation and search features that make it easier tofind a variety of cancer information. Users can log on to find anything andeverything they might need or want—from the latest news and research reports,treatment information, links to hospitals, survivor stories, and links to eventsin their local communities.