Easily Accessible Cancer Information
 CancerHelp removes barriers that patients face when researching information about cancer. The easy-to-use touchscreen interface allows non-computer literate persons to access comprehensive cancer information, literally at the touch of a finger. All information is organized into meaningful topic areas that guides the user to their destination (see the section "Can I see it in action?" for details).
This information can then be printed, allowing the patient to gather important information that can be read at the user's convenience. Furthermore, both the onscreen and printable information are available in Spanish. View sample printouts.
Some CancerHelp subscribers have extended the accessibility further by doing community outreach and taking CancerHelp to health fairs.
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Content From Trustworthy Sources
 The CancerHelp Institute is an official licensee of the National Cancer Institute's Physican Data Query (PDQ) database. Originally developed to provide physicians with state-of-the-art information on cancer diagnoses and treatment, the PDQ has been expanded to include information for patients as well. The PDQ contains separate statements for both patients and health professionals on the treatment and diagnosis of over eighty types of cancer. The CancerHelp Institute receives monthly updates of the PDQ from the NCI. As a result, CancerHelp subscribers receive a software update each month that reflects these changes.
In addition to the PDQ, the National Cancer Institute has developed a number of publications that cover such topics as clinical trials, diet and nutrition, and eating problems, to name a few. Even though these publications are often widely available, users appreciate being able to browse this information by topic, making this section one of the most accessed in CancerHelp.
CancerHelp also contains over 2000 cancer medication statements from Micromedex. The drug statements are for both generic and brand name drugs and include descriptions of medicines, major precautions, possible side effects, and guidelines for proper use. The drug statements are updated on a quarterly basis.
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User Statistics
The CancerHelp system collects user statistics in two main ways:
- Voluntary responses to on-screen questionnaires
- Automatic collection of topics that users access.
Onscreen questionnaires solicit information about the users include type (patient, family, health professional), age, sex, education level, and race. User behavior that is recorded includes the number of topics viewed, the length of time each topic was viewed, and the topics that were printed.
The CancerHelp Insitute produces quarterly and annual reports for each subscriber detailing the user responses and behavior listed above. These reports have proved invaluable for documenting patient education contacts.
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Customizable Features
CancerHelp provides three customizable areas where subscribers can promote their facility, programs, and web site(s):
 Printouts - Whenever a user prints out an article or data sheet from Cancerhelp, the facility's logo can be printed at the top of the printout. There is also an option to add a custom message as a header or footer on each of the printouts. View sample printouts
- Screen Savers - While the CancerHelp system is idle, screen savers appear and these can be customized to promote the facility and programs such as support groups, educational programming, special screening days, or other important information. Sample screensavers
- Easy Web Browser - For those who choose to connect the CancerHelp computer to the Internet there are additional customizable features. These include highlighting your facility Web site and those of other sites recommended by your facility. This allows for further promotion of your facility and can guide users to important information that might not be as easily discovered. Learn more about the Easy Web Browser
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View Sample Printouts
CancerHelp allows users to print NCI and Micromedex cancer information for both patients and health professionals, most of which are available in Spanish and English. The table below contains links to samples of common articles that can be downloaded and printed.
All the documents are PDF files. (Download Adobe Reader if you do not already have it installed.)
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