Katie's Campaign! Food is Life: Nutrition is Hope

Bring hope to those impacted by cancer

A cancer diagnosis puts you at a crossroads. In a split second, your life changes. So many decisions to make; so many difficult questions without answers. What do you do next? Which way do you turn? And how about your loved ones--what path do they follow? Will they be okay?

I work at Crossroads4Hope. Cancer may alter your life, but our network of cancer support enables you to take control of your health and wellbeing. Fighting cancer with the strength of community. And helping you navigate your journey with hope and meaning. Transforming diagnosis into resilience.

Taking On Your Cancer Journey. Together.

Help support our community of people with cancer, survivors, loved ones, caregivers, and the bereaved today by making a donation to Crossroads4Hope! 

Your gift, combined with our community, can unlock thousands of matching $$.

Nutrition is the top concern for cancer patients and their loved ones.

Individuals and families have complex relationships with food: there are cultural and regional perceptions of food as well as anger or frustration over a cancer diagnosis. For cancer patients, food does not taste the same and caregivers don't know how to provide the nutrition the patient needs. The internet has a wealth of information, but none of the current models for delivering this information have been effective in helping individuals sustain behavior change.

We are unique in our approach. To comprehensively address the dietary concerns and challenges of people with cancer and their families, Crossroads4Hope addresses three foundational components: social and emotional support; evidence-based education; and hands-on learning. We help people explore their relationship to food, and to each other, as well as the role cancer plays in their lives. Taken together, our model moves people from awareness to activation, empowerment, and resilience.

We achieve this life-altering shift through nutrition education programs led by registered dietitians in the community--where people live and work--sharing information about cancer-fighting foods and how to prepare them. Our work is based in two clinical trials in which we participated as researchers over the past five years. Demonstrations and recipes are provided for members to take what they have learned and empower them to use it in their daily life.

Food is life: nutrition is hope. Food is the glue that brings us together, nutrition is a lifestyle that can have lasting effects. Food means family and it comes with complex and layered relationships that reflect culture and history that are often difficult to change. When young children are involved, how and what families eat, especially during a crisis, becomes a formative experience that can last a lifetime. Transforming the experience from eating to nutrition for families can be beneficial well beyond the cancer diagnosis.

Donate today and help these families take control of their health and wellbeing.

Additional funding will help us expand our community-based programs, bringing more registered dietitians and more social and emotional support to those who need it when and where they need it. Our soon-to-be-constructed Mark Lipschutz Center for Nutrition and Family will feature live stream technology to ensure the widest reach and accessibility for those who are unable to get to our community because of distance or their disease.

Crossroads4Hope uses cultural humility as a foundation in all of our work. Guided by social work, our public health staff work to understand the cancer experience within specific communities. As we try to change the system, we activate these communities by normalizing discussions around cancer; delivering psychosocial interventions and programs with cultural awareness and respect; connecting patients, families, and loved ones in a timely way to whatever cancer resources and support they need. Our nutrition education and counseling are often the gateway to providing other critical assistance and programs for these families.

About Crossroads4Hope
Crossroads4Hope was founded as an independent 501(c)(3) in 2001 by four women who believed that people with cancer and their families deserved professionally led, community based social and emotional support, education, and resources throughout their cancer journey. Since 2004, more than 15,500 people have accessed Crossroads4Hope, resulting in 84,000 visits in person and virtually, and over 105,000 hours of programming delivered, all offered at no charge. Crossroads4Hope's network embraces all people touched by cancer--the diagnosed and their loved ones--providing access to resources and evidence-based programs of support, education, wellbeing, and hope. Crossroads4Hope is committed to upholding the dignity of all people through cultural humility and respect for gender identification, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, and income difference.

Learn more about Crossroads4Hope at crossroads4hope.org or call 908-658-5400.