The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Illinois Chapter would like to thank  our Patient Services Fiscal Year 2010 Survivorship Conference Sponsors/Partners:

Fiscal Year 2011 Current Local Services Available

The Illinois Chapter has many programs that support local communities, patients with blood cancer, their families, and caregivers. We have individuals and organizations within the community that partner with us to ensure individuals touched by a blood cancer stay hopeful.  In addition, we are able to provide to our Spanish-speaking patients and their families the option to communicate with a Patient Services staff member in their own language.

These programs and services include:

• Information Resource Center
• Patient Financial Aid Program
• Family Support Groups and Resources, (for more information click here)
• First Connection
• The Trish Greene Back to School Program for the Child with Cancer 
• Grassroots Advocacy Efforts for the Illinois Chapter
• Partnering with Patient Services 
• Patient Education Programs, (for dates and times click here), to register for a local program or event online complete the following form.

*required fields

Patient Services Program / Event General Registration Form

Program you are registering for:*
Do you have a blood cancer diagnosis?*	YesNo
If yes, please provide your diagnosis.
If you have cancer and it is not a blood cancer, please provide your diagnosis?
Are you a family member or caregiver?	YesNo
Are you a healthcare professional?*	YesNo
If yes, please indicate your profession. Social WorkerNurse
Please provide your state & professional ID number for reciept of certificate/CEU's
First Name*
Last Name*
Address*
City*
State*	Choose a State/Province Alabama Alaska Alberta Arizona Arkansas British Columbia California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District Of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Manitoba Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Brunswick New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York Newfoundland And Labrador North Carolina North Dakota Northwest Territories Nova Scotia Nunavut Ohio Oklahoma Ontario Oregon Pennsylvania Prince Edward Island Puerto Rico Quebec Rhode Island Saskatchewan South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virgin Islands Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Yukon
Zip/Postal Code*
Day Phone*
Email (allows us to reach you faster regarding upcoming events)
Will there be other persons attending this event with you?*	YesNo
If yes, please indicate number of additional persons attending event other than you.
Please provide the First and Last Name(s) of additional participants:
Please provide any additional information you feel will be helpful in registering you for this program/event?

Information Resource Center [(800) 955-4572]
The Information Resource Center (IRC) provides patients, families and healthcare professionals with the latest disease-related and coping information on leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma. IRC information specialists are social workers, nurses and health educators, and are available to speak with callers Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST. Information specialists will respond to email requests as well at infocenter@leukemia-lymphoma.org

Patient Financial Aid  
LLS provides a limited amount of financial assistance to help patients with significant financial need who are under a doctor's care for a confirmed blood cancer diagnosis. 

If you believe your situation warrants finacial assistance, contact  Komal Kenkare, Patient Navigation Coordinator at (312) 568-7716 or (800) 742-6595.

Family Support Groups
The Illinois Chapter offers many Family Support Groups throughout the state. These groups are free, led by healthcare professionals and are intended to provide information and support. They are open to patients and caregivers. These groups invite you to come and share your experiences with others. For more information about meeting dates and locations please call our Patient Services line at (800) 742-6595 (option #2)

If you are a professional and would like to volunteer to facilitate a family support group, please contact the Patient Services telephone line indicated above.

First Connection
The First Connection program offers peer-to-peer support for both newly diagnosed patients and survivors from a well-trained volunteer who has been through a similar diagnosis and treatment. The volunteers' own personal experiences enables him/her to relate in a unique and positive way, and to share common experiences with patients and their families. Patients and caregivers alike learn the coping skills they need, while the volunteer survivors make a meaningful, caring contribution by sharing their special perspective on the treatment and recovery process. For more information, contact: Pilar McKinney, Patient Services Manager, at  (312) 568-7728.

The Trish Greene Back to School Program for the Child with Cancer
The Trish Greene Back to School Program for the Child with Cancer fosters communication among healthcare professionals, parents, young patients, their classmates and teachers, ensuring a smooth transition from treatment back to school and other activities. A wealth of informative materials, videos and literature are available through our local chapter.

Grassroots Advocacy Efforts for the Illinois Chapter
Current policy goals include: 

• Updates in Cancer Funding
  Funding for cancer research and programs continues to be a hot topic. Congress is debating increasing funding for the National Institutes of Health this year.  Meanwhile, advocates from LLS and other cancer-related organizations continue to lobby Capitol Hill to increase funding in the fiscal year 2009 budget.

• Pediatric Cancer Issues Taking Center Stage
  Pediatric cancer has received increased attention from the federal government in the past year.  Congress has introduced several bills that would raise awareness, increase funding and expand survivorship programs for pediatric cancer patients.  At the same time, volunteers are mobilizing the effort to improve care for children with cancer.

• Blood Cancer Research Program Sought at Department of Defense   LLS and other blood cancer-related organizations have been seeking the creation of a dedicated, stand-alone blood cancer research program at the U.S. Department of Defense.  The organizations testified before Congress and drafted an appeal to legislators to explain why this program is vital to improving care for the country's service members and veterans.

• Opportunities for Grassroots Action:
  Advocates have an opportunity to take action.  Members of Congress will return to their districts over the July 4th recess, giving constituents the chance to schedule face-to-face meetings with their elected officials.  Also, LLS has enrolled in a new service that will inform advocates when members of Congress will hold town hall meetings in their districts.

• Urging Senators to Protect Patient Access to RITs
  At the end of June 2008, the U.S. Senate failed to adopt a Medicare bill that would prevent cuts in payment to physicians who treat Medicare patients and that would address a number of other Medicare payment issues. 

This Medicare bill is of central concern to lymphoma patients because it includes a provision to extend the "freeze" on payments for radioimmunotherapies (RITs).  Without such a freeze, RIT reimbursement rates will be drastically reduced and access to this valuable therapy will be threatened for many lymphoma patients. 

Congress is currently on recess, but they need to act immediately once they return to Washington.  Members of the blood cancer community are asked to urge their senators to protect patient access to RITs immediately.

For more information contact Aja Kennebrew, Coordinator, Mission Support & Volunteer Development, at (312) 568-7721 or (800) 742-6595.

Partnering with Patient Services                                                                                         Patient Services is always happy to partner with community programs and services to make our programs and events a success for our patients and their caregivers.  If you or your program are interested in partnering with Patient Services contact: Susana M. de Alvizuri, Community Outreach Manager, at (312) 568-7715. 

Through the generosity of local individuals, corporations and foundations such as The Coleman Foundation (Click on the following link to view full article about The Coleman Foundation's efforts with the Illinois Chapter) Coleman_Foundation_Challenge_Grant_Article_08.doc, the Society is making important strides in key areas of blood cancer research.  Examples of our innovative research include developing targeted therapies that attack only cancerous cells, studying genes that may produce cancers, and developing new tests that will identify cancers sooner and help determine which treatment method may be most effective for the patient.  To learn more about our blood cancer research program, please contact: Katie Weil, Senior Campaign Director of Foundation Relations at the Illinois Chapter by calling (312) 568-7743.

Patient Education Programs
As we move closer to finding cures for leukemia, lymphoma and other blood cancers, the information available can seem overwhelming. The Society seeks to be a beacon of help and guidance to all those touched by blood cancers. Our educational programs are provided free of charge to help bring treatment options into clearer focus and strengthen decision making and coping skills for patients and their families. To view our calendar of local Patient Services Patient Education Programs click here.  Return to this page to register online for the program(s) you would like to attend or call Patient Services Toll Free to register by phone at: (800) 742-6595.