Australian

www.ausmed.com.au  This site publishes health care texts, listing and organising conferences.

www.breasthealthlink.com  This website, with more than 200 pages of information, is for women who have been diagnosed with or are worried they have breast cancer as well as their families, partners and friends. The site also addresses other breast problems. It provides practical information about breast cancer and guidance on 'what to do when...' written by women who have survived breast cancer, access to other web sites, books and publication references and contacts for breast cancer topics of interest.

www.canceranswers.com.au  Lists cancer service providers, predominantly doctors and hospitals. Includes links to cancer organisations in Australia and overseas. Has an online book stall. Pubmed access allows searching for articles on cancer management. The site is set up by health profesionals who subscribe to be listed. It a growing site, and very useful.

www.cancer.org.au  This is The Cancer Council Australia's website and contains information on its members from eight state and territory cancer organisations. It provides credible, up-to-date information about all aspects of cancer. This includes The Cancer Council Queensland. The Cancer Council advises on practice and policies, and advocates for the rights of cancer patients for best treatment and supportive care.

www.cancervic.org.au/familycancer  The website for the Victorian Family Cancer Genetics Service provides valuable information about cancer and genetics. Hosted by The Cancer Council Victoria, it aims to provide the latest and most relevant information to health professionals and the whole community.

The site is useful for those concerned about their risk of cancer due to family history. It covers: Victorian Family Cancer Genetic services including GP education programs; family cancers, breast, ovarian, bowel, and melanoma; and genetic testing, genetic counselling and genetic risk. The website is simple to navigate and answers many questions in a clear and practical way.

www.careseach.com.au  This website has been set up by the Australian Government to supply information for patients and carers, health care professionals, and for palliative care specialists and researchers to provide practical guidance for approaching discussions of advance care planning with patients and families. It talks about what palliative care means, and what resources are available for people requiring this specialised service. For health care professionals it discusses not only resources available for patients and families, but also guidance for GPs, education and training, supports, caring for Indigenous patients and access to PUBMED searches. This website has information for anyone involved or interested in palliative care in any way.

www.health.qld.gov.au  Information provided about the range of services provided by Queensland Health through a network of 38 Health Service Districts and the Brisbane Mater Hospitals.

www.healthtree.com.au  This complementary health website is designed and run by a multimedia group in consultation with a committee of doctors, therapists and practitioners of natural health therapies. They promote Australia's complementary health care industry, its professionals, associations and educational institutions.

www.leukaemia.com  Website of the Leukaemia Foundation of Australia. Though not specifically focused at health professionals, they do have useful sections such as online disease booklets and a detailed list of their services Australia wide.

www.livingcaringworking.com  This site is for patients and their carers, as well as people working with people living with a life threatening illness. It has been developed by Palliative Care Australia with funding from the Australian Government Department of Health and Aging.

The site is written from an emotional/psychological point of view, discussing reactions to many aspects of the illness, from diagnosis through to being told that the illness is terminal. Topics include:

• What it feels like to be diagnosed.
• What it is like to care for a person with a terminal illness.
• What it may be like to keep on working, or to work with someone diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.

This site offers advice on what is normal in these situations, what types of questions to ask, where to look for health information, how employers and work colleagues can help.

Written information is also available for download / printing, for example:

• Thinking about questions and answers
• Thinking about your needs as a carer
• Conversations with your managers and employers

www.pallcare.org.au Palliative Care Australia (PCA) is the national peak body for palliative care in Australia. PCA provide a national and international forum for ideas, information, education, advocating for appropriate standards, and programs relating to hospice and palliative care. Their site also lists national address and details of palliative care providers. There are many downloadable publications, educational pamphlets etc.

www.pallcare.unimelb.edu.au The Centre for Palliative Care provides education and research in the field of palliative care in Victoria. The centre aims to improve the quality of palliative care within the community through clinical service, undergraduate and postgraduate education and training of physicians and allied health professionals, and through specialist research projects that currently focus on clinical symptom management, psychosocial and family issues, and nursing and service provision issues.

www.thinknursing.com  Queensland Health site promoting nursing. Features a job search database for all nursing related employment opportunities in Queensland health. Targeted at those who are interested in further education and career opportunities, from school students through to professional nurses.

www.treatment.cancerinstitute.org.au  This free website (CI-SCat) aims to provide access to information on evidence-based cancer treatments. All protocols on the site are approved by a reference group of clinicians who have expertise in that area of cancer services. The site includes patient information sheets written in everyday language.

www.unimelb.edu.au/ List of universities including Australian and International universities, provided by the University of Melbourne.

International

www.acor.org  Association of Cancer Online Resources. USA site sourced by patients, families and professionals. The site hosts mailing lists, chat rooms, bulletin boards, 'Online Resources for Support and Information' created by Patients for Patients and Caregivers incorporating Cancer Advocacy Organisations and to a lesser extent, Professional Organisations. ACOR volunteers have also created a growing number of disease specific websites.
www.cancer.org The American Cancer Society website provides credible, up-to-date information about all aspects of cancer for the health professional and patient.

http://www.cancer.org  This is the direct address for website links suggested by the American Cancer Society.

www.cancer.gov/cancer_information  The National Cancer Institute USA website coordinates, conducts and supports research, training, health information dissemination etc. This extensive site has both medical and lay person sections.

www.cancerbacup.org.uk  This UK site has many useful sections and links.

www.cancerfatigue.org  This is an American website about cancer-related fatigue. The site is organised into three sections. Section 1 Learn, information about cancer treatment, related-fatigue is provided. Section 2 Manage, fatigue evaluate tools, suggested strategies for energy conservation, nutritional tips, health in cancer caregivers manage their own fatigue, fatigue in the workplace and help with talking to nurses, doctors, employers, and family about this symptom. Section 3 Ask, a compilation of frequently asked questions.

www.cdc.gov Extensive and informative USA site. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the USA federal agency serving as the national focus for developing and applying disease prevention and control, environmental health, and health promotion and education activities designed to improve people and populations health.

www.medscape.com  This USA website is an extensive resource catering for clinicians and other healthcare professionals. The site has up-to-date free information and weekly newsletters tailored to suit individual interests.

www.medscape.com/druginfo  This is a useful shortcut for drug information on the medscape website.

www.ons.org  Oncology Nursing Society USA is a professional information service for oncology nurses, other healthcare providers, people with cancer, and their families and friends.

www.outlook-life.org  USA designed to address the needs of survivors of childhood cancer and their families. Though limited in size, it has useful sections and some links.

www.painfoundation.org  The American Pain Foundation web site is an online resource for people with pain, their families, friends, caregivers and the general public. This site is devoted to patient information and advocacy, and provides a list of links to additional resources.

www.painfoundation.org/page.asp?menu=1&item=8&file=page_links.htm  Direct address to The American Pain Foundation links page.

www.palliativedrugs.com  UK site provides essential, comprehensive information for health professionals about the use of drugs in palliative care. Use the tab called ‘Enter formulary’ to access the drug information section.

www.palliative.info  Canadian site with lots of palliative links, teaching material, protocols for the use of opioids in pain control and dyspnea, hospice information/contacts worldwide.

www.royalmarsden.org  An educational site with games to assist teaching children about cancer and chemotherapy. Suitable for young children to young adults.

www.stjude.org  Paediatric USA site. St Jude Children's Research Hospital is one of the world's premier centers for research and treatment of diseases in children, primarily paediatric cancers. Information suits both medical and lay persons.