HealthMark Multimedia Recieves SBIR for Treatment Decision Product for Persons With Lung Cancer.

Lung Cancer: Your Decision Notebook will be the fifth in this award-winning series for patients.

October 21, 2004 -- HealthMark Multimedia, LLC, has been awarded a National Cancer Institutes Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant to produce a program for lung cancer patients and their families to learn about and make decisions about treatment, clinical trials enrollment, palliative care options and end-of-life care. A part of HealthMark Multimedias Decision Notebook Series, the project is entitled, Lung Cancer: Your Decision Notebook. Although the number of patients diagnosed with lung cancer is relatively small, it is one of the most lethal cancers in the United States. Four-fifths of patients will die within one year of diagnosis and only 5% of patients survive for five years.

Lung cancers are the second leading cause of cancer deaths for men and women in the United States. Small cell carcinoma is the most common form of lung cancer and is one of the most lethal of cancers with an overall survival at five years of 5 to 10 percent. Although treatment is available, long-term survival is rarely realized. Lung cancer patients and their families need timely information about treatment and supportive care along with help managing the physical and psychological side effects of this difficult disease.

The Notebook, a part of Healthmark Multimedias Notebook Series will focus on:

Information needed after a diagnosis of lung cancer
Treatment decision aids to assist the newly diagnosed patient in working with the health care team to make treatment versus supportive care decisions.
Skill demonstrations to help with physical management of disease after treatment
End-of-life planning including Advance Directives.

The product will provide much needed information to the newly diagnosed patient and their family. In addition, it will help the patient work with the health care team in the treatment decision process. This multimedia notebook will be formatted as an information prescription enabling the health provider to easily guide the patient to relevant information.

HealthMark Multimedia, LLC, develops multimedia products that assist patients in making treatment and self-care decisions. The company uses an extensive network of medical experts, patients and family members to review product information for accuracy, relevance and usefulness. Other product lines address professional education needs, and health promotion for families. HealthMark Multimedia also develops customized multimedia projects for companies and other organizations needing specialized health communications.

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