Dear Friends,

This was a pivotal year for our community. Not only did Fight Colorectal Cancer (Fight CRC) play an important role in lowering the colorectal cancer screening age to 45 and took steps to understanding why this disease is striking young adults, we also took a pause to reflect on what we do very well, rewrote our mission, and planned a future focused on amplifying those efforts.
**Influence Research. Build Champions. Empower Patients.**
Fight CRC is looking forward to a focused future. One in which we are Champions of Hope in the Fight against Colorectal Cancer standing alongside our community of *#RelentlessChampions* until we find a cure.
Anjee Davis, MPPA
Fight CRC President

Fight CRC’s New Mission

We FIGHT to cure colorectal cancer and serve as **relentless champions of hope** for all affected by this disease through informed patient support, impactful policy change, and breakthrough research endeavors.

Join the Fight!

Whether it’s a donation, posting a **#StrongArmSelfie**, or joining Fight CRC’s advocacy alert list, there are many ways you can join the fight. **Learn how at** FightCRC.org

What did we do this year?

~ 2019 Year in Review ~

We raised awareness of colorectal cancer in communities across the United States.

Fight CRC aired a public service announcement (PSA) about the importance of colorectal cancer screening on CBS, NBC, ABC, and FOX stations in cities across the United States, including New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Boston.
PGA TOUR golf professional and colon cancer survivor, Tom Lehman participated in one of three PSAs this year which collectively garnered over 49 million audience impressions. He was the first PGA TOUR champion to win a tournament wearing the Fight CRC logo on his hat.

Over 52 million total audience impressions in New York City’s Times Square advertising during March 2019, Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.

“My friend, who lost her husband to colon cancer, saved my life, and the lives of my family! My debt of gratitude to her - and my overwhelming sense of appreciation - drives me to help prevent untimely deaths from colorectal cancer. My role as a Fight CRC ambassador helps me achieve that mission.”

— Amanda Houston, *Stage II survivor*

We ensured survivors and families could make informed decisions about their care.

Fight CRC develops medically-reviewed patient education resources on topics ranging from diagnosis to survivorship. These resources are reviewed by Fight CRC’s Medical Advisory Board of experts and offered in hard copy and for download at no cost to the patient or their loved ones.

In 2019: Over 3,000 downloads of patient resources on FightCRC.org

The Fight CRC Blog saw over 520,000 page views. Fight CRC’s patient education team blogs regularly on colorectal cancer diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, and caregiving, as well as the latest in research.

**Some of Fight CRC’s most popular blog topics this year included:**

*Colonoscopy Prep*
*Oral Chemotherapy*
*Peripheral Neuropathy*

Nearly 35,000 patient resources were provided across the country.
We developed new screening resources and information about polyps.

Fight CRC is dedicated to increasing awareness and screening rates and catching the disease at an early stage, when it is easiest to treat. Our Screening Mini-Magazine provides an in-depth look at why screening is vital, and the various types of screening options available. The polyp webpage provides information about what polyps are and how they can turn into cancer. These resources have been reviewed by members of our Medical Advisory Board, are up to date, and include survivor stories to ensure the patient perspective is kept front and center.

“When my husband Scott was diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer at the young age of 41, we were shocked and immediately turned to the Internet for help. We found Fight Colorectal Cancer online and downloaded “Your Guide in the Fight,*” which offers a step-by-step guide for newly diagnosed patients. Fight CRC’s resources helped us know what to expect in the days and weeks ahead.“*

— Caroline Johnson, *Caregiver*

We invested expertise and funding in colorectal cancer research.

We funded $55,000 to Dr. Christine Molmenti from the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research at Northwell Health and Heather Hampel from The Ohio State University to understand family risk factors among first-degree relatives for early-age onset colorectal cancer patients. The goal of this research project is to identify what proportion of early-age onset colorectal cancer is preventable.

Fight CRC is the only colorectal cancer advocacy organization that trains survivors and caregivers to sit on panels of the country's leading medical organizations, through our Research Advocacy Training and Support Program (RATS), to ensure that the patient voice informs how research is funded.
Our research advocates devoted many hours to online and in-person training to educate themselves on the entire colorectal cancer continuum, from prevention to survivorship. They continue to be passionate about contributing their experience and insight into research, ultimately representing and benefiting the greater colon and rectal cancer community.

Some of the panels Fight CRC Research Advocates sit on:

National Comprehensive Cancer Network
Department of Defense Peer-Reviewed Cancer Research Program
American Society of Cancer Oncology CancerLinQ

We brought together leading experts to discuss colorectal cancer in young adults. Forty-five researchers, oncologists, and patient advocates examined research initiatives specifically aimed at better understanding sporadic early-age onset colorectal cancer and prioritized and crafted a research agenda for future exploration. The meeting paper was published in Gastroenterology, the most prominent journal in the field of gastrointestinal disease.

We **launched a mobile app** expanding access to Fight CRC’s Clinical Trial Finder.

Since its start in 2017, 19,000 patients and caregivers have performed over 33,000 unique searches.

“The funding from the Cancer Research Institute and Fight CRC was pivotal in helping us open entirely new areas in our work to understand how the colon microbiota contributes to colon cancer. Because of this funding, we began to develop, and are continuing to expand, new approaches to identifying specific tumor immune responses to the microbiota and its members. We now expect to be able to take what we learned and apply this work to individual patients and even populations to further test if we can detect those at higher risk for colon cancer to advance colon cancer prevention approaches.”

— Cindy L. Sears, M.D., *Professor of Medicine, Oncology, and Molecular Microbiology and Immunology at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine*

We were on Capitol Hill year-round pushing for patient-centered policy change.

This March, Fight CRC brought 150 advocates to Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. so that their legislators could hear firsthand the effect colorectal cancer has had on their and their families' lives. Advocates held 156 meetings on the Hill and reached every Member of Congress with information about colorectal cancer.

Leading up to and during March, nearly 400 advocates from across the United States joined Fight CRC’s Blue Star States campaign to declare March as Colorectal Cancer Awareness in each state. Proclamations were made in 46 states, as well as a national proclamation.

Advocates sent nearly 3,000 emails to their Members of Congress, that led to the addition of language in the FY2020 appropriations bill to direct the National Cancer Institute to study and prioritize early-age onset colorectal cancer.

“I found Fight CRC when I wanted to figure out why this is happening and wanted to do something about it. Call-on Congress puts experiences into motion and you see how what you are doing is actually helping. I feel like I have been through cancer and treatment and my next step is to do something about it, so that others aren't going through the same thing.”

— Gina Benedetti, *Stage III survivor*

We continued to bring together a community of survivors and caregivers.

Fight CRC unites a community of colon and rectal cancer survivors and loved ones online and through in-person events because we want to ensure that nobody fights alone.

Mount Flora, Colorado

It takes the average person 13,000 steps to reach the top!

Every year, Climb for a Cure gives survivors and caregivers the opportunity to commit to a physical and inspiring challenge by summiting a mountain. This year, over 120 colorectal cancer survivors, caregivers, and loved ones summited Mount Flora in Colorado.

In addition, over 70 colorectal cancer survivors and supporters participated in Climb for a Cure from home through the virtual climb. The virtual climb is open to anyone year-round.

Climb for a Cure

This year Climb participants **raised over $90,800** to support colorectal cancer advocacy and patient education.

Fight CRC brought together nearly 30 survivors and caregivers at our annual Ambassador Training Program to share their very personal and life-impacting stories about colorectal cancer. Fight CRC Ambassadors raise awareness of the importance of screening, and this year were featured online, in print, and on television, resulting in 3.5 million media impressions.