Mesothelioma and Asbestos

A diagnosis of mesothelioma or any other class of cancer can affect the patient as well as his or her family emotionally as well as physically. Gilda’s Club exists to address these needs, by creating welcoming communities of without charge support to people existing with cancer—men, women, adults, teens as well as children—together with their family as well as friends. Gilda’s Club’s philosophy is that an emotional as well as social support community is an essential complement to a cancer patient’s health examination treatment. All of the non-profit organization’s services are without charge of charge.

Gilda’s Club was named for the comedian Gilda Radner, who died of ovarian cancer in 1989 at the age of 42. It was co-founded by Gilda’s husband, comedian Gene Wilder, entertainment critic Joel Siegel as well as cancer psychotherapist Joanna Bull. Gilda’s Club offers its services in 21 cities with 30 clubhouses as well as satellites in North America, as well as the organization has nine recent locations in the works.

The organization’s services include:

• weekly Wellness Groups for people existing with cancer;
• weekly Family Groups for the patient’s family members as well as friends;
• monthly Networking Groups, which focus on topics of interest such as a particular class of cancer;
• lectures based on members’ interests, on topics such as nutrition, pain management, as well as talking to kids about cancer;
• workshops on meditation, yoga, art, exercise, as well as cooking; and
• social activities such as pot luck dinners, karaoke, comedy nights, as well as holiday celebrations.

In addition, Gilda’s Club offers distinguished support services, such as two-hour sessions for the patients as well as their families at the time of diagnosis or during another challenging event, to help develop a support network to assist with such needs as food preparation, transportation, etc. Another service they provide is meeting with family members to enlist the entire family as a resource as well as to help the family learn as a group how to live with cancer. There are as well as programs to assist cancer survivors post-treatment, as well as support for those who possess lost a loved one to cancer.

Funding for Gilda’s Club comes from intimate donations, corporate sponsors, as well as foundations.

For more information about Gilda’s Club, as well as to find a Gilda’s Club in your area, visit the organization’s website at www.gildasclub.org.