New Mexico Cancer Council
The New Mexico Cancer Council is a public/private partnership working to reduce the burden of cancer in New Mexico.
Who are we?
The New Mexico Cancer Council is a collaborative effort of diverse public and private partners working together to attack cancer in New Mexico through the development, implementation and evaluation of the New Mexico Cancer Plan. Our goal is to increase access to information, prevention and treatment using innovative and effective programs and policies thus reducing the human and economic burden of cancer and improving the outcomes and quality of life for New Mexicans.
What does the New Mexico Cancer Council do?
The New Mexico Cancer Council’s goals are:
- To provide an overview of the current status of cancer in New Mexico.
- To develop strategies to reduce overall cancer incidence and mortality.
- To provide a forum for communication of cancer-related issues and activities among community groups.
- To provide an improved quality of life for those affected by cancer in New Mexico.
Who can join the New Mexico Cancer Council?
Membership in the New Mexico Cancer Council is open to any organization or person who is interested in reducing the burden of cancer in New Mexico. The Cancer Council’s growing membership includes organizations and individuals who represent diverse professions – all of whom are concerned with alleviating the burden and suffering cancer causes in our state. Constituencies include patient care, research, emotional support services, education, advocacy and policy and media.
While an Executive Committee oversees achievement of the New Mexico Cancer Plan’s goals and objectives, and serves as the decision-making body of the New Mexico Cancer Council, the Cancer Council acts in an advisory capacity to the Executive Committee. Workgroups may be formed as appropriate to address specific issues. There are currently six active workgroups.
The New Mexico Cancer Plan
The New Mexico Cancer Plan is a comprehensive strategy to address the impact of cancer on communities throughout New Mexico. It is the culmination of a multiyear effort by the New Mexico Cancer Council and its state, regional and local partners.
The New Mexico Cancer Plan
serves as a blueprint for cancer control in our state. The Plan resulted from many hours of work and thoughtful contributions by the Cancer Plan revision committee, the Executive Committee and the numerous valued partners and stakeholders throughout the state.
Workgroups
The goals and objectives of the New Mexico Cancer Plan are accomplished through the dedicated efforts of New Mexico Cancer Council workgroups. These workgroups address specific issues; membership in each workgroup is open to New Mexico Cancer Council members as well as members of the general public. Current workgroups are described below.
Albuquerque Cancer Coalition
A coalition of cancer support agencies, hospital treatment centers and governmental agencies uniting to inform the community of resources, to educate, to advocate and to meet the needs of cancer patients and their families.
For more information, contact
Chrisann Gray at cgray@casanm.org
Colorectal Cancer Workgroup
For more information, contact
Prajatka Adsul at padsul@salud.unm.edu.
Native American Workgroup
This workgroup will identify the needs of Native American populations to provide guidance to the NM Cancer Council regarding NM Native American cancer issues and how the Cancer Plan’s goal areas may better relate to these issues.
For more information, contact
Janet Quintana-Cook, janet@janetcook.com
New Mexico Cancer Patient Navigation Network
This workgroup is focused on improving access to cancer-related services through expansion of community-based patient navigation services.
For more information, contact
Elba Saavedra at elsaave@unm.edu.
Quality of Life Workgroup
This workgroup is currently under development. More information will be forthcoming as it becomes available.
For more information, contact
Amy Gundelach at Amy@thegcap.org.
Rural Health Equity Workgroup
This workgroup aims to identify and address the cancer burden of rural and frontier communities in New Mexico through outreach and partnerships among providers and other healthcare stakeholders.
For more information, contact
Isela Garcia at iselag@nmsu.edu.