Pierce County Cancer Survivorship Conference 2018

The Pierce County Cancer Survivorship Conference is an annual event to support our community of cancer patients, survivors and caregivers in the South Sound. With a series of breakout sessions, a keynote speaker, meals and more, this conference is a resource for anyone who has recently been diagnosed with cancer, on the journey to beating cancer, as well as their friends and family.

Whether you’d like to attend or volunteer at the event, read on for details on what to expect.

Throughout the day, attendees attend various breakout sessions and explore an array of topics. In addition to the breakout sessions, massage therapists will donate chair massages, our henna artist returns for free henna body art, and a rock painting artist will be there to help attendees explore their artistic side. Each year, new topics are introduced so attendees can attend every year and gain new knowledge and resources.What does the Pierce County Survivorship Conference entail?

Here is a sample of a few if the topics for 2018: Ways to Boost Your Brain Health; Feldenkrais Method – Improve How to Move; Oncoplastic Breast Surgery; Personalized Medicine; Cancer’s Bell: Running it Well; Diet’s Link to Cancer, Mindfulness and Cancer, Healthy Home, and more.

Who is involved in the conference?The keynote speaker this year is Laren Rusch Watson, holistic health coach, speaker, author of “WTF?! I Have Cancer?,” and founder of the Permanent Remission. “Sometimes being a cancer survivor can be as hard as being a patient, for the fear of recurrence can be constant and overwhelming,” shares Watson. After five years as a holistic health coach, Laren was betrayed by her super healthy lifestyle and diagnosed with two back-to-back aggressive cancers: mantle cell lymphoma and triple negative breast cancer. Fear was a constant companion through the four-year journey back to health. In her address, Laren will share her inspiring story and the tools she developed in mind, body, and spirt to keep fear at bay and live her life with strength and optimism.

“This event has been a true collaboration in this community bringing together our hospitals, providers, leaders, advocates, educators, exhibitors and volunteers as resources to cancer survivors and caregivers in Pierce County,” shares Rachael Costner, Corporate Relations Manager, TRA Medical Imaging / Diagnostic Imaging Northwest.

“It’s with great pride to say that we have been involved from planning to sponsoring this conference since its inception,” says Costner. “We are able to help connect patients and share information at our TRA Medical Imaging outpatient sites in Pierce and Thurston County and Diagnostic Imaging Northwest outpatient sites in the Bonney Lake and Puyallup area. Additionally, by communicating with providers in our community, together, we can make a difference.”

2018 will mark PCCSC’s 10th year. The conference averages 300+ attendees and is run completely by volunteers creating a consortium of representatives who help fund the conference through their time, support, and sponsorships. It is through these sponsorships that the conference is free to all attendees. Continuing their presenting sponsorship is the University of Puget Sound; platinum sponsors are CHI Franciscan Health and MultiCare; gold sponsor is The American Society; and silver sponsors include Carol Milgard Breast Center, Cascade Regional Blood Services, Diagnostic Imaging Northwest, Northwest Medical Specialties, Puyallup Surgical Consultants and TRA Medical Imaging. For complete list of sponsors and exhibitors click here.What is the history of this event?

Registrants may visit Pierce Cancer Survivorship for complete descriptions of the 28 presentations.

The conference takes place on Wednesday, August 8, at the University of Puget Sound, 1500 N. Warner St, Tacoma, 98416, from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.What do I need to know to attend the Pierce County Cancer Survivorship Conference?

The conference is free to attend, however attendees must register. Registration is available online at Pierce County Cancer Survivorship. To register by phone, call 253-207-5145. Breakfast and lunch are available at no additional charge for all attendees that register.

How can I volunteer at this event?

The conference wouldn’t be possible without the gracious volunteers that help year after year with setup, greeting, check in, speaker assistants, door monitors, wayfinding, and lunch assistants, to name a few. If you would like to work a shift, you can find more information online.