Breast Cancer Research Project
Effective July 1, 2009, The Sierra-Stanford Partnership joined The Sierra Fund to provide breast cancer support groups locally to women via video-conferencing in Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Tehama and Trinity Counties. This project is in partnership with Stanford University School of Medicine and funded by the California Breast Cancer Research Program.
Click here to visit the Breast Cancer Research Project's Homepage. 
The Sierra-Stanford Partnership recruits women, who have or have had breast cancer in rural and frontier regions. Women who enroll in the project will attend a series of eight small breast cancer support group meetings at their local community health clinic or hospital where they will be connected via live, interactive videoconferencing with a trained support group leader in Grass Valley, CA. These groups will also include breast cancer survivors from other rural communities located in the nine counties listed above.
These Breast Cancer Groups:
- Will use existing technology in the region
- Will be located close to home at 40+ health facilities throughout the region
- Will be interactive and participants will see, hear, and speak with women at three other remote sites
Recent research documents the positive outcomes of support group attendance and video conferencing technology now makes it possible to provide services to rural and isolated areas.
For many rural women living with breast cancer, attending a breast cancer support group is not always possible. Although the majority of physicians encourage support group participation and positive outcomes from participation have been documented, many rural or frontier towns don’t have the population to support a regular, professionally-led group. For this reason, The Sierra Fund and Stanford University School of Medicine are working together to research the feasibility of providing video-conferenced breast cancer support groups throughout rural Northeastern California.
Project History:
A successful pilot project was conducted in Plumas, Modoc and Siskiyou Counties two years ago. During this pilot, a LCSW experienced in leading support groups, connected simultaneously via real-time video, with small groups of women in Quincy, Alturas and Yreka. The women met for 1½ hour weekly for eight weeks. The women were able to connect using telemedicine videoconferencing equipment at their local health care facilities. It didn’t take long for the women to emotionally connect with each other and begin sharing their stories. The women vividly described the value of talking to women in other locations about breast cancer treatment and management – which we learned varies greatly from one community to another. The women were eager to hear from women who had traveled to cities to be treated in large hospitals where they received more information and choices. A woman who had been diagnosed five years previously said, “I learned more from this support group than I have from anywhere else.”
The women completed questionnaires before and after attending the groups and the resulting data showed improvements in the areas of depression and Post Traumatic Stress. As a result of this successful pilot project, funding was received to replicate the project throughout nine rural northeastern California counties. There is no charge for women to participate in the groups.
For more information, or if you are interested in participating in a support group please contact:
Susan Ferrier
530-274-0292
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