For patients, families and carers

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For patients, families and carers

Advance Care Planning Australia

Advance Care Planning Australia provides national advance care planning resources for individuals, families, health professional and service providers. Resources include a national advisory service, information resources, a legal forms hub and education modules.

Australian Cancer Survivorship Centre

The Australian Cancer Survivorship Centre has developed information resources and events to help people move from initial treatment to post treatment and beyond, including those receiving maintenance treatments. While they do not provide clinical advice, they connect with a range of providers to enable improved care.

  • Telephone: (03) 8559 6220
  • Website

Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care

The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care has developed a resource for patients and carers explaining the coordination of care that patients should receive from their health service during cancer treatment. The resource is called What to expect when receiving medication for cancer care.

Beyond Blue

Beyond Blue provides information about depression, anxiety and related disorders, as well as about available treatment and support services.

Camp Quality

Camp Quality gives kids facing cancer the chance to be kids again. Camp Quality’s services and programs are created specifically to support children aged up to 15 years who are dealing with their own cancer diagnosis or the diagnosis of someone they love, like a brother, sister, mum, dad or carer.

Camp Quality provides kids, their siblings and parents with fun experiences, education, specialised cancer care, counselling and a supportive community that is delivered in

hospital, online, at school and away from it all on camps and retreats.

Cancer Australia

Cancer Australia provides information for consumers, carers and their families including printed resources and video content.

Cancer Council’s Cancer Information and Support Service

Cancer Council 13 11 20 is a confidential telephone support service available to anyone affected by cancer. This service acts as a gateway to evidence-based documented, practical and emotional support available through Cancer Council services and other community organisations. Calls will be answered by a nurse or other oncology professional who can provide information relevant to a patient’s or carer’s situation. Health professionals can also access this service.

  • Telephone: 13 11 20 – Monday to Friday, 9.00am to 5.00pm (some states have extended hours)
  • Website

Cancer Council’s Cancer Connect

Cancer Connect is a free and confidential telephone peer support service that connects someone who has cancer with a specially trained volunteer who has had a similar cancer experience.

A Connect volunteer can listen with understanding and share their experiences and ways of coping. They can provide practical information, emotional support and hope. Many people newly diagnosed with cancer find this one-to-one support very beneficial.

For more information on Cancer Connect call Cancer Council on 13 11 20.

Canteen

Canteen helps adolescents, young adults and parents to cope with cancer in their family. Canteen offers individual support services, peer support services and a youth cancer service, as well as books, resources and useful links.

  • Telephone: 1800 835 932 to talk to a health professional about information and support for young people or 1800 226 833 for other enquiries
  • Website

CareSearch Children and Adolescents

CareSearch’s paediatric page provides information for children and adolescents with

life-limiting illness.

Clinical trial information

For a collection of clinical trials available in Australia see the following sources of information:

CanEAT pathway

A guide to optimal cancer nutrition for people with cancer, carers and health professionals.

Guides to best cancer care

The short guides help patients, carers and families understand the optimal cancer care that should be provided at each step. They include optimal timeframes within which tests or procedures should be completed, prompt lists to support patients to understand what might happen at each step of their cancer journey and to consider what questions to ask, and provide information to help patients and carers communicate with health professionals.

The guides are located on an interactive web portal, with downloadable PDFs available in multiple languages.

Kids Helpline

Kids Helpline is Australia’s only free (even from a mobile), confidential 24/07 online and phone counselling service for young people aged 5 to

  1. Qualified counsellors at Kids Helpline are available via WebChat, phone or email anytime and for any reason.

Look Good, Feel Better

A free national community service program, run by the Cancer Patients Foundation, dedicated to teaching cancer patients how to manage the appearance-related side effects caused by treatment for any type of cancer.

Leukaemia Foundation

The Leukaemia Foundation provides specialist support, funds leading-edge research and advocates for Australians diagnosed with blood cancer. The foundation guides patients and their loved ones through the emotional, physical and psychosocial challenges of a blood cancer diagnosis, treatment and survivorship.

The foundation’s team of qualified health professionals can answer questions, talk through concerns and connect patients to blood cancer support groups. The team can also help with practical concerns such as accommodation close to treatment, transport to appointments and financial assistance.

MDS Foundation

The MDS Foundation is a global non-profit advocacy organisation that for more than 25 years has supported patients and their

families as well as healthcare providers in the fields of MDS and its related diseases. The foundation supports and educates patients, their communities and healthcare providers, and contributes to innovative research in the fields

of MDS and its related continuum of diseases to better diagnose, control and ultimately cure these diseases.

Paediatric palliative care

Paediatric palliative care provides practical information about paediatric palliative care to families who have a child with a life-limiting illness, as well as the people who support them. Information is also available for health professionals to better support families and provide quality paediatric palliative care.

Quitline

Quitline is a confidential, evidence-based telephone counselling service. Highly trained Quitline counsellors use behaviour change techniques and motivational interviewing over multiple calls to help people plan, make and sustain a quit attempt.

Quitline is a culturally inclusive service for all, and Aboriginal counsellors are also available. Health professionals can refer patients to Quitline online or via fax.

  • Telephone: 13 7848
  • Website or the relevant website in your state or territory.

Redkite

“Redkite is Australia’s leading childhood cancer support organisation, providing free practical, emotional and financial support for all members of families with a child with cancer (aged 18 or under). Redkite support is confidential and free to anyone connected to a child with cancer.

Support includes counselling for all members of the family including children, peer support

groups, financial assistance and help to connect with other relevant support services.”

Ronald McDonald House

Ronald McDonald Houses are a home-away- from-home for families of seriously ill children being treated at nearby hospitals. Rather than spending the night in a hospital waiting room, family members can stay in comfort at a Ronald McDonald House and receive support from staff, volunteers or other families that are sharing similar experiences.

Youth Cancer Service

Youth Cancer Services are hospital-based multidisciplinary teams providing care and support for 15–25-year-olds with cancer. In addition to providing high-quality, age-

appropriate cancer care, Youth Cancer Services provide leadership and support to other health professionals and services. There are five Youth Cancer Service lead sites across Australia linked to a network of more than 25 hospitals to enable every young person with cancer to access age- appropriate psychosocial and medical care.

Youth Cancer Services provide information for patients and healthcare providers on finding a Youth Cancer Service, the services offered, and many aspects of cancer treatment and life after cancer.

Website