The Margot Murphy Women's Cancer Program & Avon: Creating A Safety Net for Women In-Need

Funding Continues to Support Diverse Client Needs

Earlier this spring, the Avon-Pfizer Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) Grants Program sponsored three Margot Murphy Women’s Cancer Program representatives to attend its second annual grantees retreat in New York City. The MBC Grants Program launched in 2014 to support initiatives to provide information and services that help people with metastatic breast cancer navigate the medical and emotional challenges associated with their diagnosis.  Client Gerry Crowley, Program Director Judith Harkins, and Care Navigator & Wellness Manager Lily Tsen participated alongside representatives from 22 different non-profit organizations from across the United States in the two-day retreat. The program covered topics unique to the needs of metastatic breast cancer patients, including integrative medicine, legal assistance, clinical trials, and nutrition for those undergoing treatment. As the only attendee over 80, Gerry was able to provide a unique perspective. The team from Shanti was able to connect with other providers and client representatives during panel sessions and breakout groups, creating a stronger network of care for all those facing a metastatic breast cancer diagnosis. 

Through Shanti’s partnership with the Avon Foundation for Women, our Women’s Cancer Program has received $475,000 in grants, including $75,000 in grants from the Avon-Pfizer MBC Grants Program. This generous funding helps ensure that Shanti can continue to offer critical safety net services to underserved women with breast cancer in San Francisco. Significantly, the support through the MBC Grants Program enables our staff to identify the unique needs of our clients with metastatic breast cancer and expand and adapt our services to best serve them. 

About Shanti’s Margot Murphy Women’s Cancer Program:

Shanti's Margot Murphy Women's Cancer Program offers services to mitigate the barriers women face after a cancer diagnosis. Our Care Navigators provide multilingual, culturally competent services, offering patient advocacy, language interpretation, help applying for social services, in-home support, appointment accompaniment, and transportation assistance. Our staff meets with clients in their homes, hospital rooms, or in our office. Shanti also provides health and wellness groups and classes.

We work with anyone newly diagnosed, in survivorship, or in palliative care.

Our program is part of a larger breast cancer community, partnering with public and private hospitals in San Francisco, and working closely with social workers, medical providers, and community partners to encourage treatment adherence to reduce interruptions in care.

Last year, Shanti provided Care Navigation, Emotional and Practical Support, and Health & Wellness Activities to more than 500 women facing cancer in San Francisco.

For more insight on metastatic breast cancer and the Avon-Pfizer MBC Grants Program, please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkkRiNamCow

Client Spotlight: Stokes

 

Longtime HIV activist Stokes was aware of Shanti from the time he arrived in San Francisco in 1984, though Stokes’ story with Shanti really begins in 1991, when he started working for the Activities Program. After a year or so, Stokes left his job but continued to support Shanti’s fundraising efforts. Several years later, suffering from declining health, the loss of his grandfather, and lack of familial support on the West Coast, Stokes turned to Shanti for support. Returning from his grandfather’s funeral, Stokes thought it was very important to take advantage of any services available and accessed Shanti at that time. "I turned to Shanti, very desperate for help," he remembers. Since then, Stokes’ involvement with Shanti has included being matched with several volunteers and speaking at City Hall in support of maintaining Shanti’s funding.

Stokes notes that his involvement with Shanti was an instrumental part of his journey to accept and embrace his serostatus. "Coming to Shanti was an acknowledgement that I had HIV and I didn’t know how to deal with it," he said. Stokes’ first volunteer was none other than Planning Council Director Mark Molnar, and Stokes recalls their time together fondly. Mark remarked that Stokes "could handle any situation."

Over the years, the connections that Stokes has made through Shanti have remained in his life. Stokes appreciates the thought put into his peer support matches and reports that "adaptability, patience, compassion, and holistic support" are the attributes of his Shanti volunteers that he finds most valuable. "Having a person dedicated to my needs, accepting me for all that I am has helped me allow people to help me and that has made me feel more a part of the world."

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