Help for Cancer Patients is in the Bag
Loni Nannini - Arizona Daily Star - May 23, 2010
When Janie Cohen began battling metastatic melanoma in 2003, comfort came in a canvas bag.
Cohen was so impressed with the free informational resources and support materials provided in that bag by Bag It, she sent a donation to the local nonprofit and has been helping facilitate the service for other newly diagnosed cancer patients ever since.
"I had been trying to cope myself and find information from here and there. Trying to put it all together yourself when you are scared out of your mind is hard to do," said Cohen, a local artist who has been in remission since 2006. "I was so impressed by all the information right in the bag. It was like, 'Wow!' "
Bag It provides a resource CD, books and educational materials from the National Cancer Institute and National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship.
The materials address topics including treatment and follow-up care, talking to doctors, dealing with insurance companies, research studies, life after cancer and advice for caregivers.
The group has also compiled a three-ring binder to help organize lab results, insurance papers and other medical records.
The binder was invaluable during Cohen's treatment by physicians and other specialists in Tucson and Texas. It includes checklists and prompts questions addressing important issues that patients often overlook on their own, particularly in the midst of treatment when many experience "chemo brain."
"I can't tell you how many times you go to the doctor and they can't find your records or need a copy of something another doctor has, so it delays the whole process. This lets you have everything with you every single time you go to a doctor, and every doctor says, 'Thank you so much,' " Cohen said.
Bag It is intended to fight fear and empower patients while helping the medical community better serve them, according to founder Sherri Romanoski, a breast-cancer survivor.
Since 2003, the organization has reached more than 24,000 cancer patients; it has distributed more than 7,500 bags through 130 offices, hospitals and clinics statewide over the last year.
"We serve all cancers and (both) genders, which sometimes limits us to the funding we can receive, but I think it is important to help everyone who is diagnosed," she said. "People need the opportunity to have information that will help them navigate their cancer journey.
"Once they have the information, they can become an active member of their treatment team."
The organization relies heavily on money raised from fundraisers such as the third annual Wine & Dine for Bag It to subsidize the bags so there is no cost to patients.
All proceeds from the June 6 event and silent auction - which will feature an original oil painting by Cohen, whose Spirit of Renewal Series is on display in the Arizona Cancer Center - will remain in the Tucson community.
Cohen is gratified that "Beyond," which portrays a young woman she met at a cancer retreat, will help support others facing cancer.
"I used a line from my journaling in the painting: 'And so it was that the world turned upside down and inside out and the colors got confused.' The world gets confused when you have cancer."
If you go
• What: Third annual Wine & Dine for Bag It.
• When: 6 p.m. June 6.
• Where: Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch Resort, 5601 N. Hacienda del Sol Road.
• Cost: $125 per person.
Festivities include dinner with a paired wine tasting, a raffle and a silent auction of wine-themed gifts such as a stay at Spirit Tree Inn Bed & Breakfast in Patagonia and a private tour with wine tasting and Italian food at the local vineyard Vigneto Nanini, as well as an original oil painting titled "Beyond" by Tucson artist Janie Cohen.
• For tickets or more information, go to www.bagit4u.org or call 575-9602.
Contact freelance writer Loni Nannini at ninch2@comcast.net
Cohen was so impressed with the free informational resources and support materials provided in that bag by Bag It, she sent a donation to the local nonprofit and has been helping facilitate the service for other newly diagnosed cancer patients ever since.
"I had been trying to cope myself and find information from here and there. Trying to put it all together yourself when you are scared out of your mind is hard to do," said Cohen, a local artist who has been in remission since 2006. "I was so impressed by all the information right in the bag. It was like, 'Wow!' "
Bag It provides a resource CD, books and educational materials from the National Cancer Institute and National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship.
The materials address topics including treatment and follow-up care, talking to doctors, dealing with insurance companies, research studies, life after cancer and advice for caregivers.
The group has also compiled a three-ring binder to help organize lab results, insurance papers and other medical records.
The binder was invaluable during Cohen's treatment by physicians and other specialists in Tucson and Texas. It includes checklists and prompts questions addressing important issues that patients often overlook on their own, particularly in the midst of treatment when many experience "chemo brain."
"I can't tell you how many times you go to the doctor and they can't find your records or need a copy of something another doctor has, so it delays the whole process. This lets you have everything with you every single time you go to a doctor, and every doctor says, 'Thank you so much,' " Cohen said.
Bag It is intended to fight fear and empower patients while helping the medical community better serve them, according to founder Sherri Romanoski, a breast-cancer survivor.
Since 2003, the organization has reached more than 24,000 cancer patients; it has distributed more than 7,500 bags through 130 offices, hospitals and clinics statewide over the last year.
"We serve all cancers and (both) genders, which sometimes limits us to the funding we can receive, but I think it is important to help everyone who is diagnosed," she said. "People need the opportunity to have information that will help them navigate their cancer journey.
"Once they have the information, they can become an active member of their treatment team."
The organization relies heavily on money raised from fundraisers such as the third annual Wine & Dine for Bag It to subsidize the bags so there is no cost to patients.
All proceeds from the June 6 event and silent auction - which will feature an original oil painting by Cohen, whose Spirit of Renewal Series is on display in the Arizona Cancer Center - will remain in the Tucson community.
Cohen is gratified that "Beyond," which portrays a young woman she met at a cancer retreat, will help support others facing cancer.
"I used a line from my journaling in the painting: 'And so it was that the world turned upside down and inside out and the colors got confused.' The world gets confused when you have cancer."
If you go
• What: Third annual Wine & Dine for Bag It.
• When: 6 p.m. June 6.
• Where: Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch Resort, 5601 N. Hacienda del Sol Road.
• Cost: $125 per person.
Festivities include dinner with a paired wine tasting, a raffle and a silent auction of wine-themed gifts such as a stay at Spirit Tree Inn Bed & Breakfast in Patagonia and a private tour with wine tasting and Italian food at the local vineyard Vigneto Nanini, as well as an original oil painting titled "Beyond" by Tucson artist Janie Cohen.
• For tickets or more information, go to www.bagit4u.org or call 575-9602.
Contact freelance writer Loni Nannini at ninch2@comcast.net
