EMMC Cancer Care Joins Dana-Farber Cancer Collaborative

Eastern Maine Medical Center is now partnering with Boston's Dana Farber Cancer Institute to bring more clinical trials to Maine.

Clinical trials can offer experimental and ground-breaking treatments for cancer patients that are running out of options. But, prior to this collaboration, those patients had to travel to Boston for treatment, which was expensive and uncomfortable for ailing patients and their families. Now, many of those clinical trials will be brought to the Lafayette Family Cancer Center in Brewer, making it much more convenient.

Membership in the Dana-Farber Cancer Care Collaborative will also enhance educational opportunities for staff members, and offer opportunities for consultation with medical specialists at Dana-Farber in Boston for complex cases. Overall, it will greatly improve the options available for treatment of cancer patients in Maine. Deborah Carey Johnson, CEO of Eastern Maine Medical Center called the Dana-Farber staff 'a truly remarkable group' at the formal announcement earlier this week.

The Dana-Farber Cancer Care Collaborative was created to help disseminate the latest and most effective, evidence-based practices and standards to hospitals and physicians. A rigorous review precedes acceptance into the Collaborative, which EMMC officials say resulted in a confirmation of its quality of care.