The Arkansas Cancer Coalition (ARCC) is a statewide network consisting of organizations and individuals committed to the goal of improving the health of Arkansans. The mission of the Coalition is to reduce the human suffering and economic burden from cancer for all Arkansas citizens.

History of the ARCC
In 1992, Arkansas began its program focusing on breast cancer. In 1993, a coalition for cancer control was developed to support and monitor a state breast cancer control plan. This coalition, working with the Arkansas Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Program (BCCCP) of the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) led ADH to a five-year agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in accordance with Public Law 101-354, to provide comprehensive breast and cervical cancer control services for early detection in 1995. Four key partners for outreach were YWCA EncorePlus, the American Cancer Society (ACS), The Witness Project, and the Arkansas Affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

In 1997, the Arkansas Cancer Control Coalition led the way for successful legislation, The Breast Cancer Act of 1997. This act appropriated $4 million in state general revenue with backup funding from a tobacco tax to provide breast cancer screening, diagnosis, treatment, and research. This state funding complemented the CDC funds to ensure a timely diagnosis and treatment for eligible Arkansas women.

During April-August 1998, Arkansas participated in a case study of cancer prevention and control conducted by CDC contractor, Battelle Centers for Health Research and Evaluation. Arkansas was selected to take part in the Battelle study based on a range of characteristics that the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control (DCPC) of CDC believed influenced the planning process including: previous attempts at comprehensive cancer planning, the degree of centralization of public health functions, presence of a cancer registry, and resources available to support cancer planning activities. In July 1998, Arkansas submitted a Comprehensive Cancer Control (CCC) grant application and was designated a CDC planning state for CCC, but was not funded.

The Battelle report was released in September 1998, laying the foundation for an internal CCC taskforce within ADH for comprehensive cancer planning. By January 1999, ADH engaged in a technical assistance meeting with CDC, Battelle, and the Cancer Information Service. This meeting began a series of monthly conference calls with Battelle.

During 2000, meetings were held to plan for Arkansas Cancer Summit I, the state's first comprehensive cancer conference that was held in September 2000. Arkansas also met with the evaluation contractor for BCCCP to plan for the combination of cancer control efforts to make them more comprehensive. The Taskforce continued to meet in late 2000, sketching out the framework for a statewide comprehensive cancer control plan.

By the end of 2000, the ARCP Taskforce and the Arkansas Cancer Control Coalition combined, becoming the Arkansas Cancer Coalition, and held their first joint meeting in May 2001. By November of that year, the Arkansas Cancer Plan: A Framework for Action was published and led the way for implementation funding from CDC.

Moving Forward
Current activities of the Coalition include the awarding of competitive "mini-grants" for innovative community-based projects, assisting Coalition partners with various outreach activities, supporting professional and public education surrounding various cancer topics, and planning for breast cancer and prostate cancer conferences. Planning is also ongoing for the Arkansas Cancer Summit series, this year's installment being, "The Arkansas Summit on Cancer and Health Disparities."

The Coalition is also partnering with the Arkansas Cancer Registry and the American Cancer Society to create an Arkansas State Facts & Figures report and county cancer fact sheets. Coalition committees and special project teams are also working on many other activities around the state, and represent Arkansas at several national conferences and symposia.