I am more than cancer campaign.


I am:

a mother
an athlete
an accountant
a sister
a teacher

I am:

scared
alone
depressed

But I am not cancer.



I am not Cancer Campaign – transforming the cancer experience by dramatically improving the quality of life for millions of cancer patients and their families – Building on an earlier initiative, CAPO planning on expanding the I am more than cancer project by launching a national campaign to raise awareness of the emotional and personal costs of cancer and the right of all cancer patients in Canada to access psychosocial services that address their needs. By increasing understanding and awareness of psychosocial services, the campaign will also empower patients to ask for support and access to the services they need.

The campaign goals are to:

  • Raise public awareness about the debilitating quality of life issues cancer patients, survivors on a daily basis.
  • To direct patients to psychosocial services wherever they reside in Canada.
  • Help people look beyond cancer and focus on the whole person – normalizing the cancer experience.
  • Demystify and de-stigmatize support care services.
  • Pressure the healthcare system to ensure all cancer centres offer psychosocial services.
  • Inform patients of their rights to access supportive care services.
  • Inform employers about return to work issue for cancer patients and the strategies to assist.
  • To address ethic and cultural taboos regarding seeking supportive services.

I am not cancer – I am a women with one breast – I want my normal life back

  • 59% of women with breast cancer surveyed strongly agreed with the statement “I just want to feel human again”.

I am not cancer – I am a husband– I do not feel like a man

  • 56% of respondents recently surveyed indicated a challenge with resuming intimate or sexual relationships.
  • 1 in 7 men will develop prostate cancer during their lifetime.

I am not cancer – I am a lawyer – I am scared to go back to work

  • The number of cancer patients who survive their disease is rapidly growing and many fine that returning to their jobs helps improve their quality of life. However, many survivors must also content with long-term medical and psychological effects of cancer which can affect their ability to work. Studies have shown that multidisciplinary interventions can lead to higher return-to-work rates than usual care.

I am not cancer – I am a father – my cancer is heredity.

While there much to be learned about why cancer happens to some people and not others, we do know what 50% of cancers can be prevented if we used the information we do know now. Psychosocial oncology helps people understand their risk for cancer and promotes healthy lifestyles to reduce the risk of cancer

I am not cancer ­– I am a mother – I need help saying goodbye

While we are becoming increasingly successful at treating cancer, more than 75,000 Canadians a year will die from cancer. At the end-of-life the importance of addressing psychosocial and spiritual issues takes on additional significance and are consistently identified as being as important, and in some instances more important then other domains of quality of life.

The campaign will include a service of targeted I am not statement to help various populations self identify with being lost in the cancer experience. All too often the focus is on the specific tumor – and often lost is the person behind the tumor. The I am not messages will start the dialogue and point to people to more information. The campaign is also designed to help health care profession to be more aware of the human side of cancer.

The “I am More than Cancer” public awareness campaign will include television, print, radio, posters, web and social media to spread the word about psychosocial oncology services across all regions of Canada.


The Canadian Association of
Psychosocial Oncology (CAPO)

189 Queen Street East, Suite 1
Toronto, ON M5A 1S2
P. 416-968-0207
F. 416-968-6818
[email protected]

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