To most people, the concepts of being a cancer survivor and participating in survivorship care early on in your cancer journey are relatively new. For the growing number of more than 20 million cancer survivors in the U.S., these are more than just concepts. Cancer survivorship encompasses many aspects of your journey to the best possible health outcomes and quality of life. As a community, we must talk about the nuanced perspectives of life as cancer survivors. What better way to help each other than by sharing our stories?

That's why Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Cancer Survivorship and Translational Behavioral Sciences Research Program is pleased to share the first issue of Sylvester Journeys: Our Voices, a newsletter dedicated to the cancer survivors, loved ones, caregivers, and their communities.

Each quarter, we will share stories from Sylvester survivors, family members, caregivers, and experts to shine a light on the issues that impact our community, addressing a broad range of topics.

Some of the goals of survivorship care are to assess and intervene to promote physical and emotional well-being, optimal symptom management, and effective care coordination. Other goals range from improving lifestyle factors like physical activity and nutrition, to addressing financial and other challenges. These services, the science behind them and their impact in our community will be highlighted in Our Voices. We'll also share Sylvester resources for you and your loved ones to take advantage of, including upcoming survivorship events such as workshops and the vast number of resources available to our survivors via our Cancer Support Services.

If you have a story you would like to share with the community, please consider submitting it to our editorial team. After all, this is your newsletter. Your perspectives have the potential to help others navigate through similar challenges. That, in itself, is something to celebrate.

On behalf of the Cancer Survivorship and Translational Behavioral Sciences Research program, we look forward to listening to and learning from your journeys.

Sincerely,

Dr. Frank Penedo
Director, Cancer Survivorship and Support Care
Associate Director, Cancer Survivorship & Translational Behavioral Sciences
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center