Cancer School for Patients
The Cancer School for Patients is an awareness and education project which is hosted by the Center and unites leading oncologists, clinical psychologists and legal professionals.
The Cancer School for Patients is a joint creation of the Center and the “Movement Against Cancer”, which is an NGO networking across 15 Russian regions.
The first session of the Cancer School for Patients was held in 2008. The many sessions regularly held over the years helped to shape the most convenient session format, i.e. ‘meet the oncologist’ (medical part), ‘meet the legal professional’ (legal part) and ‘meet the psychologist’ sessions.
Oncologists explain in a clear way the latest and most cutting-edge methods for the diagnosis and treatment of malignant tumors. Legal professionals touch upon important dimensions of the rights of patients, rights of cancer patients in the workplace and access to social welfare. Special attention is paid to the rights of cancer patients to access free medical care and obtain free medications, as well as actions cancer patients should take if these rights have been infringed.
An important part of the Cancer School for Patients is ‘meet the psychologist’ sessions which help cancer patients to deal with stress associated with cancer. Each new ‘meet the psychologist’ session deals with the questions and issues raised by cancer patients and their families during the previous sessions.
The Cancer School for Patients which is essentially a dialogue between cancer patients, their families and healthcare specialists on most salient topics has considerable social importance and usefulness. Regular communication between cancer patients and healthcare specialists during sessions helps to build the trust and promotes involvement of patients in their own treatment. The School is also useful in that it helps cancer patients to meet each other, share their experience and offer their support to each other.
The Cancer School for Patients offed by the Center is a place where patients and their family can ask all their questions and receive educated and informed answers.