Video

'Hoping for a Cure, Advocating for Care': COA's Patient Advocacy Initiative

Author(s):

COA’s head of patient advocacy discusses the role of self-advocacy in survivorship and receiving quality, affordable, accessible cancer care.

Patient advocacy is an integral part of survivorship. The Community Oncology Alliance (COA) has a mission to help patients with cancer advocate for better community oncology practices so these patients can receive “quality, affordable and accessible cancer care.” The non-profit organization represents independent community cancer centers across the United States.

Rose Gerber, director of patient advocacy and education for COA and a 15-year cancer survivor, discussed the role of advocacy when it comes to ensuring patients receive top quality cancer care. Gerber also discussed the Community Oncology Alliance Patient Advocacy Network (CPAN), a division of COA created to raise awareness about the impact of public policy on patients with cancer and the issues affecting local cancer centers.

“Our focus is on the care,” said Gerber. “We support the cure and we advocate for the care. A lot of patients do not realize that where they’re getting their cancer treatment is a really important part of cancer survivorship.”

Newsletter

Stay up to date on cancer updates, research and education

Related Videos
Daniel Jernazian, who beat cancer twice, credits his sports mindset for survival and calls it winning his ‘life World Championship’.
Patients in rural or underserved areas may have worse outcomes, highlighting the need for early support to address care access barriers.
Image of man with text.
Dr. Emre Yekedüz discusses how ASCO 2025 highlights precision medicine, biomarkers and the gut microbiome as keys to advancing kidney cancer care.
Dr. Breelyn Wilky stresses the importance of expert guidance and second opinions for patients with GIST, as treatment options continue to evolve rapidly.
Mark Daniels, 83, credits CAR T-cell therapy and compassionate care for helping him overcome lymphoma and endure the isolating treatment toll.
An early study of BGB-16673 for hard-to-treat leukemia found that side effects were manageable with no new safety concerns.
Image of woman with text.
Image of goy, and text.
Watch oncology dietitian Kenisha Parikh prepare creamy lentil soup, a soothing, protein-packed recipe to help ease side effects during treatment.