The Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Care Foundation is a registered charity established to raise funds to support the Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Centre (in St. John's) and its affiliated cancer programs throughout the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

All contributions to the Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Care Foundation remain in the province and are used to:

• enhance regional programs close to the patient's home;
• support local education and research projects;
• fund patient support programs and services; and,
• acquire cancer treatment equipment.

Significant advances have been made over the past ten years for the care of cancer patients in Newfoundland and Labrador. However, cancer screening programs and an aging population will result in increased incidence rates and will place additional pressure on existing resources.

Presently, in Canada, we can expect that in excess of 144,000 people will be diagnosed with an invasive cancer.

By the year 2015, the number of new invasive cancer cases will be about 43% greater than that of 2002 and by 2010, cancer will be the leading cause of death, surpassing cardiovascular disease.

We have seen a slight improvement in survival rates resulting from early detection and better treatment programs over the past 15 years. Consequently, there are more people living with cancer.

Cancer prevalence, that is the number of people in the province who have a cancer, is estimated to be about 285% higher than the incidence (number of people diagnosed annually) which means that we have 18,000-20,000 people living with cancer.

Each year, the Foundation's Board of Directors reviews and approves the funding commitments and operating budget for the Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Care Foundation, based on revenue projections from all sources. Every dollar raised here helps cancer patients here.

The mission of the Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Care Foundation is to develop, steward and distribute charitable resources to enhance treatment and supportive care programs for cancer patients, fund local cancer research initiatives and provide continuing education opportunities for staff of the Dr. H. Bliss Murphy Cancer Centre and affiliated cancer programs in Newfoundland and Labrador.