The Patient and Family Resource Center

UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center offers online community for cancer patients and families

UNC Health Care is glad to announce a free online service available to patients. This service, managed by CarePages.com, allows cancer patients and their families to engage in a supportive online community with others.

Using this service, each patient can create a personalized CarePages website to share stories, photos and e-mail updates. CarePages also enables patients to receive supportive messages from friends and family. In addition, patients can participate in discussion forums to find other patients with similar conditions, learn from other patient's stories, read blogs and find articles relating to specific cancer topics. The website also includes the ability to manage your own privacy settings.

Beth McDonald, of Rockingham, NC, created her own CarePage in May after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She said writing on her CarePage felt therapeutic because it allowed her to record and examine her experiences as a cancer patient. She also said CarePages made it easier to keep her large family updated on her status. McDonald said, "Another way it has helped me is that the messages that my family and friends have left have been such a source of encouragement and support."

"We are delighted to have CarePages available to our UNC families. The beauty of this website is in creating a central place to communicate with family and friends at the times when you feel most energized to do so," said Tina Shaban, director of the UNC Lineberger Patient and Family Resource Center.

To access and create your own CarePage, please visit: http://www.carepages.com/unchealthcare?cid=unchealthcarelinks