Download FAQs - Midwest Cancer Alliance

FAQs
Why is Midwest Cancer Alliance (MCA) changing its name to Masonic Cancer Alliance?
A $5 million gift commitment from the Kansas Masons will provide funds for outreach, professional
education, staff development and membership support for the Midwest Cancer Alliance, a network of
hospitals, cancer centers and research facilities. The gift will permanently endow the MCA providing longterm sustainability. In recognition of the gift, Midwest Cancer Alliance, the outreach division of The
University of Kansas Cancer Center, will change its name to the Masonic Cancer Alliance.
Since 1972, the Kansas Masons, through the Kansas Foundation the philanthropic arm of the fraternity has
partnered with the University of Kansas to fight cancer and improve people’s lives. Kansas Masons have
contributed nearly $25 million to the KU Medical Center, which honored this commitment by naming the
research arm of the cancer center the Kansas Masonic Cancer Research Institute (KMCRI).The generosity of
Kansas Masons was instrumental in helping The University of Kansas Cancer Center achieve the milestone
of obtaining National Cancer Institute (NCI) designated Cancer Center in 2012. Fundraising support from the
Masons continues to benefit KMCRI and its programs, such as patient navigation through the Midwest
Cancer Alliance. Together, we are ensuring a growing base of support for cancer research, education and
treatment for Kansans and the surrounding region and are giving naming rights to the MCA.
When will MCA change their name to Masonic Cancer Alliance?
The MCA will change its name to the Masonic Cancer Alliance once the $5 million funding commitment is
complete.
Will the MCA’s activities change when it becomes the Masonic Cancer Alliance?
The Midwest Cancer Alliance partnership with hospitals across the state will not change. The MCA will
remain the outreach network of The University of Kansas Cancer Center, the governance will not change.
The MCA is a membership-based organization that brings together cancer research, care and support
professionals to advance the quality and reach of cancer prevention, early detection, treatment, and
survivorship in the Heartland.
The gift will provide enduring operations support to the MCA. In addition, the MCA will be able to extend
additional support for cancer prevention and survivorship services to communities and primary care
providers across the state.
More options, close to home.
Will the MCA’s activities change when it becomes the Masonic Cancer Alliance? (cont.)
MCA, links member hospitals, medical professionals and their patients with KU Cancer Center research and
services with so that the latest cancer research and care can be accessed close to home. In fact, the motto of
the MCA is More Options, Close to Home.
All MCA-member medical professionals have access to second opinion and consultation services with multidisciplinary cancer experts, conferences and other networking events, outreach programs, patient navigation
support, communication materials, web resources and continuing education programs. For the convenience of
our affiliated medical professionals, the MCA provides many of these services at member locations, thanks to
technology like Interactive Televideo (ITV).
When did the Kansas Masons develop a partnership with The University of Kansas Cancer Center and MCA?
Since 1972, Kansas Masons has partnered with the University of Kansas to fight cancer and improve people’s
lives. The foundation has contributed nearly $25 million to the KU Medical Center, which honored this
commitment by naming the research arm of the cancer center the Kansas Masonic Cancer Research Institute
(KMCRI).The generosity of the Kansas Masons was instrumental in helping The University of Kansas Cancer
Center achieve the milestone of obtaining National Cancer Institute (NCI) designated Cancer Center in 2012.
Fundraising support from the masons continues to benefit KMCRI and its programs, such as patient navigation
through the Midwest Cancer Alliance. Together, we are ensuring a growing base of support for cancer
research, education and treatment for Kansans and the surrounding region.
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Kansas Masons first partnered with KU School of Medicine in 1972 by providing funds for an Oncology Nurse
The relationship evolved and additional gifts to support specific pilot projects in oncology like Carol Fabian’s,
“Markers Predictive of Breast Cancer in High Risk Women”, which leveraged funding from the National Cancer
Institute
By October of 1992, more than $1.2 million was contributed to the cancer center allowing KU Medical Center to
take the first step toward acquiring a highly competitive cancer center planning grant from the NCI
In 2003, $5 million had been raised by the Kansas Masonic Foundation to benefit the cancer center, funding a
myriad of cancer research projects and statewide cancer screenings with collaboration from Kansas Masonic
Lodges
With a pledge of $15 million in November of 2003, the research arm of the University of Kansas Cancer Center
was renamed, The Kansas Masonic Cancer Research Institute
The $15 million raised from the “Partnership for Life” campaign has funded innovative cancer research pilot
projects, the Midwest Cancer Alliance Kansas Masonic Navigator and multiple professorships
The partnership continues and current funding supports faculty research essential to our ongoing quest for NCI
designation. More than $22 million in cancer support is attributed to the Kansas Masons and the work of the
Kansas Masonic Foundation
With a $ 5 million commitment in 2016, the Midwest Cancer Alliance will be renamed, the Masonic Cancer
Alliance once the funds are raised
Why are the Kansas Masons interested in supporting cancer programs at The University of Kansas Cancer
Center?
For nearly a half century, Kansas Masonic Foundation’s philanthropic efforts have been funding effective
programs in the areas of charity, education and research that both embody and encourage the power of
cooperation. On September 21, 1974, during the dedication of the Oncology Center in the KU Medical Center,
Masons and the Kansas Masonic Foundation were recognized for their support of outreach programs at the
Center. According to the Foundation’s minutes, “This was indeed an event which is now a monument to the
Masons of Kansas for their contributions in aiding mankind and serving the residents of Kansas in a most
tangible and humanitarian way.
Today, the outreach program, in collaboration with The University of Kansas Cancer Center, continues to
provide free public screenings at locations across the state for prostate and skin cancer, as well as bone
density scans. KU Medical Center staff members are on hand to perform the procedures and to answer
questions from the public. Sponsored by the Kansas Masonic Foundation and hosted by local lodges, these
clinics perform a valuable public service, while embodying the Kansas Masonic Foundation’s enduring goal to
be of service to all mankind. Many hundreds of people have been helped in the program’s history. These
outreach screenings have alerted to individuals to potentially dangerous cancerous conditions and have
received potentially life-saving advice. This important program not only furthers the work of the Midwest
Cancer Alliance at the University of Kansas, but also allows communities statewide to see the long-standing
commitment of Kansas Masons to continue to fight cancer until a cure is found.
Who are the Kansas Masons?
Freemasonry (Masonry) is a fraternity. Although Masonry is believed to be the oldest surviving fraternal
organization in the world, the exact date of its founding is uncertain. Freemasonry can, however, be easily
traced to sixteenth century Scotland although the first Masonic governing body was not founded until 1717 in
London.
The Grand Lodge of Kansas is the governing body of Freemasonry in Kansas, formed March 17, 1856, nearly
five years before Kansas statehood. Bleeding Kansas, the prelude to America’s Civil War, provided the
backdrop to Kansas Freemasonry. In Kansas, a prospective member must be at least 18 years of age and
profess a belief in a Supreme Being. Masonry explicitly states the equality of men, regardless of race, creed, or
color. There are Masons of all racial, ethnic, economic and religious backgrounds.
Who are the Kansas Masons? (cont.)
In 1854, three Wyandot Indians and five white settlers – all of whom were Masons – coalesced in what is now
Wyandotte County, Kansas, and petitioned the Grand Lodge of Missouri to establish a Lodge of Masons in a
Wyandot Indian village. On August 4, 1854, the dispensation was granted and one week later Kansas Lodge U.D.
(eventually to become Wyandotte Lodge No. 3) opened for work. Within two years, two other lodges in Kansas were
formed and in 1856 the trio formed the Grand Lodge of Kansas as America’s Civil War loomed.
Notably, the first master of Kansas Lodge U.D. was John Milton Chivington, a Methodist missionary to the
Wyandot and a vocal opponent of slavery. Chivington left Kansas in 1860, became an officer in the Union army
and was later celebrated as a hero for his part in the Battle of Glorieta Pass (1862). His orchestration of the
Sand Creek Massacre (1864), however, earned him universal condemnation and ultimately made him
infamous. – F. P. Strickland, Transactions, The American Lodge of Research, Vol. III, No. 3, p. 485.
Do the Masons support cancer research and hospitals in other states?
Yes, for example, the University of Minnesota named their cancer center the Masonic Cancer Center
http://www.cancer.umn.edu/about/minnesota-masonic-charities/index.htm and Shriners Hospitals
http://www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org/ (all Shriners are Masons, but not all Masons are Shriners,
Shriners International is a branch of the Masons).
Additional Information:
http://kmfonline.org/#KUCancerResearch
http://www.medfordlodge103.org/faq