Cancer in adolescents and young adults is a relatively rare occurrence compared to older adults, so “they are at greater risk for delayed diagnosis, poor care coordination, limited access to clinical trials and inadequate psychosocial support,” says pediatric
oncologist Jacqueline Casillas, MD, MSHS, director of the Daltrey/Townshend Teen & Young Adult Cancer Program at UCLA.

“Many medical oncologists outside the academic medical-care setting rarely see patients in this population in their daily practices, and so may not be familiar with the nuances associated with caring for patients in this age group,” Dr. Casillas explains. “Consequently, adolescents and young adults may not receive the multidisciplinary care needed to optimize their survival and quality of life.”

The Daltrey/Townshend program aims to fill that gap by addressing the medical, psychosocial and supportive-care needs of adolescents and young adults, from diagnosis through survivorship. The program facilitates access to the most appropriate pediatric or adult clinical trials and research, providing appropriate psychosocial support and services for patients and their families and delivering patient-centered clinical care in a specialized, age-appropriate cancer unit — the first of its kind in the U.S.

Learn more about the Daltrey/Townshend Teen & Young Adult Cancer Program at UCLA at http://uclahealth.org/DaltreyTYACancer