We work to expand access to supportive cancer care – a model of cancer care that complements the clinical care that oncologists provide by helping people living with cancer and their caregivers also address the symptoms and side effects of cancer and cancer treatment.
Supportive cancer care provides wraparound services that help address physical and emotional health through steps like; counseling, nutrition support, pain management, and access to services such as transportation.
We believe that early, ongoing access to supportive cancer care – regardless of where a person receives their cancer treatment or their diagnosis – should be the national standard of care in the United States. There is substantial research and data that demonstrate how supportive care results in better patient outcomes, improved quality of life for the patient and caregiver, and lower healthcare costs without denying access to services.
That’s why we work to grow access to supportive cancer care through grantmaking, coalition building, public education, and helping fill gaps in research.
We work to expand access to supportive cancer care by:
Grantmaking & Active Partnerships: Partnering with Providers: We partner with providers around the country who are working to deliver supportive care to people living with cancer and serious illnesses. For nearly 20 years, the Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation has partnered with providers like Dempsey Center, Providence Institute for Human Caring, and City of Hope — one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States and a national leader in providing cancer patients with best-in-class, integrated supportive care programs.
Supporting Community Organizations That Champion Health Access: The Foundation has forged partnerships with organizations across the country who are championing health access, including patient and caregiving education, navigation, access, and support, as well as changes in practices and policies.
Convening a National Cross-Sector Coalition: The Foundation is a member and convener of Together for Supportive Cancer Care, a national, cross-sector coalition launched in September 2024. The coalition represents organizations and leaders across the country and across sectors, including cancer care providers, patient advocacy groups, policy experts, employers, pharmaceutical companies, philanthropy, insurers, and other industry leaders. The coalition works to establish supportive cancer care as the national standard for cancer care, ensuring the needs of people with cancer and their caregivers are met at every step of their cancer journey — throughout diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship. It also focuses on data and research, policy advocacy, and employer engagement.
Hosting the “Together for Supportive Cancer Care” Summit: In March 2024, in the nation’s capital, the Foundation convened the “Together for Supportive Cancer Care” Summit. The event brought together public policy experts and industry stakeholders, including employers, insurance and pharmaceutical companies, philanthropy, cancer care providers, and advocacy groups for people with cancer to develop a set of strategies that could make supportive care the national standard for cancer and other threatening diseases. One outcome was the affirmation to create a cross-sector coalition.
Convening a National Cross-Sector Coalition | Together for Supportive Cancer Care: The Foundation is a member and convener of Together for Supportive Cancer Care, a national, cross-sector coalition launched in September 2024. The coalition represents organizations and leaders across the country and across sectors, including cancer care providers, patient advocacy groups, policy experts, employers, pharmaceutical companies, philanthropy, insurers, and other industry leaders. The coalition works to establish supportive cancer care as the national standard for cancer care, ensuring the needs of people with cancer and their caregivers are met at every step of their cancer journey—throughout diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship—and It focuses on data and research, policy advocacy, and employer engagement.
The American Cancer Society’s CARES Platform: The Foundation is supporting the American Cancer Society and their ACS CARES platform. Their website-based, and downloadable app educates patients and caregivers about supportive care, makes referrals to local resources based on the patient’s zip code, and provides “peer matching” if requested by the user.
Raising Awareness Among the Public: The Together for Supportive Cancer Care coalition is working to raise awareness of supportive cancer care among the public across digital platforms, including paid, social, and earned media.
Engaging Policymakers: Working with its partners, the Foundation helps educate state and federal policymakers on the value of supportive cancer care.
Engaging employers: Approximately 49% of the population is covered by their employers’ insurance, so the foundation and the coalition are working with employers to ensure supportive care services are covered, and employees are aware of it. We invested in the Purchasers Business Group on Health to survey their members including Costco, Walmart, Amazon, Salesforce, and Cisco, and develop a business case for employers as well as a working group of top national employers who are working on standard purchasing agreements.
A National Survey of Patients and Providers: In February 2023, we initiated research to explore the barriers to supportive cancer care and better understand the needs that exist for expanded patient access. To date, we have conducted online surveys among more than 7,000 patients with cancer or survivors of cancer. We also surveyed more than 1500 healthcare practitioners who had recently treated patients with cancer, including physicians, nurses, and physician assistants.
Data Collection in Key States: The Foundation is also supporting data collection through a pilot project in four states—New Jersey, Ohio, Utah, and North Carolina—to help demonstrate how supportive cancer care has better outcomes and lower costs. The project brings together cancer patients (service users), healthcare institutions (providers) and insurers (payers) who will define, clarify and implement a 12- to 18-month demonstration project.
©2025 Biller Foundation. All rights reserved.
400 University Street, Suite 300
Seattle, WA 98101
Phone: (206) 535-7543