1. BREAST CANCER (Irina Vargas Group)
2. PROSTATE CANCER
3. CANCER AND TOBACCO
4. NUTRITION AND CANCER
5. RESEARCH
6. IMAGE AND COMMUNICATION SECTOR
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These are:
1. BREAST CANCER (Irina Vargas Group)
FEFOC wants to contribute to increasing the information about the best therapeutic options in cancer detection, and also to raising women’s awareness of the necessity of periodic check ups in order to detect the disease early.
FEFOC has organized a team composed of 20 people (10 with mastectomies), five doctors and one psychologist as a work group, to give guidance over the telephone to people who are interested in receiving breast cancer information, training, or support. The telephone number for this service is 93-217-2182 Monday to Friday from 11 to 3 in the afternoon.
FEFOC organizes training courses in prevention, early diagnosis, therapeutic options, and testing (psychological support, relationship therapy, etc) for healthy people as well as people with cancer.
FEFOC, with the permission of the North Amercian Cancer Institute, has translated, adapted and edited the book “What You Need to Know About Breast Cancer”, explaining all the aspects of breast cancer to the non-technical reader. This book is distributed throughout the Spanish state.
FEFOC has also translated, adapted and edited the book “Guide for the Treatment of Breast Cancer Patients”, with permission from the American Cancer Society (ACS) .
FEFOC does research on breast cancer patients, on a psychological and sociological level. In colaboration with Caritas and similar organizations, we have concluded an evaluation of the experience and knowledge of breast cancer of 541 women in the most disadvantaged social groups.
A survey is underway, which already includes 325 women, with the aim of getting to know what breast cancer treatment is like as experienced by the patient.
In the webpage http://www.fefoc.org/ you can find information about breast cancer (surveys, books, etc).
We get requests for advice about breast cancer through our free information service by email from the whole country, Latin America, and now from Spanish speakers in the USA . This service, as are all our activities, is accessible through fefoc@fefoc.org.
Once a year we hold a big public conference on breast cancer called “WOMEN AND BREAST CANCER” Advances in breast cancer research in the past year, survey results, testimonies, etc are presented. The Honorary Chair of these conferences has been honored with the presence of Mrs. Ana Botella, Mrs. Luisa Rudi, and Mrs Carmen Alborch. In 2001 the Chair was Mrs. Irene Rigau Oliver, Counsellor of Social Welfare of the Catalan Government.
2. PROSTATE CANCER
This is a support group for prostate cancer patients and their family members, a positive, life-affirming influence for patients who have serious illnesses, accompanied by intense emotions, especially anguish, confusion, and depression. One constant theme is fear, in its widest sense. The purpose of this support group is to contribute to relieving the emotional and affective changes of the patients and their family, and help them face the situation with a much more constructive attitude.
As with breast cancer, FEFOC has obtained permission from the American Cancer Society (ACS) to translate and distribute their book “ Prostate Cancer Treatment Guide for Patients”.
3. CANCER AND TOBACCO
30% of cancer caused deaths are tobacco related. Public education campaigns have stabilized or even reduced the percentage of male smokers but with adolescents and women the opposite is happening. FEFOC wants to contribute to a public condemnation of the new trends in advertising clearly directed towards adolescents and women that are being developed for different cigarette brands. The big tobacco companies have changed their target to young people, who are much more vulnerable and more easily influenced.
FEFOC wants to raise the awareness of women and adolescents about the use of tobacco and to help those who would like to stop smoking.
Another project in this area FEFOC would like to begin is a 'White Book on Tobacco", targeting women and especially adolescents.
FEFOC has created a Stop Smoking Unit to help those who would like to stop smoking.
Fefoc has developed a Stop Smoking Program to help you give up smoking.
4. NUTRITION AND CANCER
FEFOC participates in studies on nutrition and cancer. We have published a brochure about Nutrition and Cancer that is being distributed now.
5. RESEARCH
In addition to the areas that have already been described, FEFOC is carrying out research on the following:
A study on the awareness of the European Code against Cancer has been started. The results of a large scale survey are revealing a low level of public awareness, indicating a possible need for sociological research to design mechanisms of intervention.
Research on changes in the quality of life of 392 breast cancer patients, with emphasis on the sexual dysfunction of the couple resulting from the diagnosis.
Assessment of the effects, attitudes and information of prostate cancer patients.
Assessment of the degree of tobacco addiction of smokers using Fagerström’s questionnaire, on the website with the author’s permission.
Knowledge of cancer in general and breast cancer in particular of women with a high socio-economic status (to compare this with the results of the Caritas study (so far 50 women have responded).
Assessment of how women face breast cancer using M.Watson and S. Greer’s Mental Adjustment to Cancer scale, with the authors’ permission, on the webpage.
6. IMAGE AND COMMUNICATION SECTOR
Our web page (www.fefoc.org) has cancer information, an auto-evaluation on tobacco use, and various surveysThe free information service by email (fefoc@fefoc.org) is open to other questions.
