NEWS FLASH Fox News features Forefront Stitchers as part of American Idol Campaign

Associated with the UCCRC Cancer Resource Center, the Forefront Stitchers is a special group of volunteers who donate time, talent, and materials to help make our patients comfortable. The Stitchers knit caps for adults, teenagers, and children. It is supported by the University of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation. This thoughtful, personalized service helps patients deal with the sense of isolation often caused by serious diseases, such as cancer. The Stitchers were featured on Fox News Chicago as part of the American Idol special to “help children and young people in extreme poverty here at home, in the U.S., and around the world.”

If you want to learn more about how to donate, supply yarn or join the University of Chicago's Forefront Stitchers, please contact Mary Herbert at 773-834-7326 or mherbert@medicine.bsd.uchicago.edu.

The Cancer Resource Center

In 1997, The University of Chicago Cancer Research Center opened a unique resource to offer patients and their families the empathetic counseling and reliable information that are so critical to the healing process. In June 2004, the UCCRC—in partnership with the American Cancer Society and the Duchossois family—remodeled the Cancer Resource Center and moved it to a more accessible and convenient location. Open Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 5 PM, the Center is located in the main lobby of the Duchossois Center for Advanced Medicine (DCAM) at 5758 S. Maryland Avenue.

These improvements and the ongoing participation of the American Cancer Society enable the Center to provide a broad range of services. The new Cancer Resource Center is a welcoming facility where people can learn about the disease in all of its many manifestations, get answers to their most troubling questions and link with worthwhile community resources. The ultimate goal of the Center is to dispel much of cancer's mystery and replace rumor and myth with fact and truth.

The Center is staffed by a specially-trained social worker (Trish Pangilinan) and an administrator-counselor (Mary Herbert), who help patients and their families:

  • Access comprehensive cancer information, including facts about specific types of cancer, treatment information and pain management;

  • Learn about innovative cancer research trials and how to participate in them;

  • Connect with community resources that supply housekeeping, home healthcare, child care, medical equipment, and other support services; and

  • Join support groups designed to serve their emotional and information needs.

The Center also makes computers available to provide information access for staff, patients, families, health care professionals and other interested individuals. An open area provides an extensive array of informational materials. The Cancer Resource staff is available to help people find the resources they need either online or in the Center's library.

In addition, the Center has a closed conference area in which patients and their families can consult in private with Cancer Resource Center staff, who are experienced, well-trained advocates for cancer patients and their families. They assess the needs of individuals and help them obtain the services they require in dealing with cancer's uncertainties.

The Cancer Resource Center is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Drop-in visitors are welcome. To schedule an appointment for counseling, please call toll-free at 1-877-824-0660.

Cancer Resource Center Brochure

Calendar of Events