News Details
Sam Donaldson Named Inaugural Chair of NCCN Foundation Board
The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) announces that veteran newsman Sam Donaldson has accepted the position of chair of the NCCN Foundation Board of Directors. The NCCN Foundation will seek philanthropic support for programs to benefit patients with cancer as well as researchers.
March 10, 2010
HOLLYWOOD, FL — The NCCN 15th Annual Conference: Clinical Practice Guidelines & Quality Cancer Care™ commenced on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 with an announcement that veteran ABC news anchor Sam Donaldson has been named as chair of the newly established NCCN Foundation Board of Directors.
William T. McGivney, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of NCCN, noted, “We are thrilled that Mr. Donaldson has accepted the position as chair of the NCCN Foundation Board of Directors. I am confident that he will provide wise and practical leadership as we look to implement programs that will benefit patients with cancer as well as researchers.”
The NCCN Foundation was recently established as the philanthropic affiliate of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) to embrace the NCCN mission of improving the quality and effectiveness of care provided to patients with cancer, while providing additional information and resources for informed decision-making.
“As a champion of the NCCN and of the amazing work they do, I am honored to serve on the NCCN Foundation Board of Directors and look forward to lending my voice to contribute to its many significant accomplishments,” said Sam Donaldson.
One of the primary initiatives of the NCCN Foundation will be to gain support for the development of the NCCN Patient Guidelines. The NCCN Patient Guidelines are translations of the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines™) into a patient-friendly resource outlining appropriate treatment.
“As one of the 12 million cancer survivors in the United States today, I can personally attest to the need for credible information that patients can use to help them navigate the overwhelming and emotional task of deciding on treatment,” noted Mr. Donaldson.
The NCCN Foundation will also seek philanthropic support for effective distribution of the NCCN Patient Guidelines as well as the translation of these guidelines into multiple foreign languages. It will also be looking to attain funds to develop and distribute NCCN Cancer Medication Information Sheets™ (NCCN CMI™), a resource to assist patients with safety and compliance concerns related to complex medication regimens, as well as developing survivorship programs for the growing population of cancer survivors.
Since research is a critical component to the ongoing advancement of cancer treatments, an additional focus of the NCCN Foundation is to develop programs to encourage and assist “Young Investigators” as well as nurses in conducting innovative and collaborative research in clinical oncology at NCCN Member Institutions.