Founding Story
Advocates for Collaborative Education (ACE) was born from a tweet dialogue during #ASCO20 where, after decades of breaking down silos between patient communities and clinical care and research, a group of advocates realized we had inadvertenly created silos across cancer types.
While some cancers had well-established research funding and connections, others were struggling in the awareness stage. With limited resources and urgent, unmet needs across the cancer continuum, we felt learning with and from each other was the answer.
In the following years, our group met online several times a week to share wild successes, abysmal failures, and to lean on the hive mind of our membership for suggestions and support in our collective advocacy efforts. We experienced with rapid membership growth and, following the success of our first, advocate-led research project into quality-of-life, we incorporated in 2024 as a 501c3 organization to continue and expand our efforts.
Our Mission
To unite & empower advocates through pan-cancer collaborations, basic and advanced advocacy education, and the sharing of leading practices
Our Goal
To elevate patient, community, research, and policy advocacy in order to improve outcomes of people living with a cancer diagnosis
We gather together virtually several times a month, to assess what is already out there in each of our communities, what is working for some groups and what might be leveraged across others before identifying and addressing consistent gaps.
We co-create materials, support each others’ projects, and are eagerly mentoring a new generation of patient, research, and policy advocates.
Upcoming Events
7/9/26
ACE Organizational Update (10amPT/1pmET)
7/14/26
ACE Member Meeting: Successful Partnering with Cancer Non-Profits (Janet Freeman Daily) (3pmPT /6pmET)
7/16/26
ACE New Member Welcome / Orientation (10amPT/1pmET)
7/21/26
ACE Member Meeting: The Power of Storytelling (Steven Bidwell) (10amPT/1pmET)
7/23/26
ACE Member Meeting: How to Advocate for a Population that you are not Part of (Dana Deighton) (10amPT/1pmET)
8/6/26
ACE Member Meeting: Advocate Perspective: Can there be value in changing s Standard of Care Arm during a Clinical Trial? (Kristin McJunkins) (10amPT/1pmET)
8/18/26
ACE Member Meeting: Connecting with Cancer Researchers at Your Local University (Bob Riter) (Noon PT, 3pm ET)
8/20/26
ACE Member Meeting: “Your Sin Caused You to have Cancer” (Mary-Gloria Orji) (10amPT/1 pm ET)
Past Events
5/26/26
ACE Member Meeting: How to Work with Pharma (Donna Short)
5/21/26
*ACE Member Meeting: KENCO in Kenya (Prisca Githuka)
5/19/26
*ACE Member Meeting: Wellness after Cancer (Judy Fitzgerald)
5/5/26
*ACE Member Meeting: Clinical Trial Cooperative Groups & the Role of Patient Advocates: Improving Relevance, Access, and Outcomes in Oncology Research (Allison Rosen)
4/9/26
ACE Organizational Updates & Monthly Open Forum
4/7/26
*ACE Member Meeting: Creating a Patient-Centered Advocacy Podcast (Annamaria Scaccia)
3/26/26
ACE Member Meeting: Trauma Informed Advocacy (Stef Gayhart)
3/19/26
*ACE Member Meeting: Bioethics in Healthcare (Christina Sisti)
3/12/26
ACE Organizational Updates & Monthly Open Forum
3/10/26
*ACE Member Meeting: Engaging Cancer Patients and Caregivers for Better Outcomes (Brad Power)
3/5/26
*ACE MEETING: From Presence to Influence: Operationalizing Meaningful Engagement in Cancer Research and Policy (Carolyn Taylor)
2/12/26
ACE Organizational Updates & Monthly Open Forum
1/8/26
ACE Organizational Updates & Monthly Open Forum
* Recordings Now Available