Lilly Oncology on Canvas comes to Goshen Health System

April 7, 2009

GOSHEN, Ind. - Lilly Oncology on Canvas, an international art exhibit honoring the journeys traveled by millions of people affected by cancer worldwide, is coming  to Goshen Health System during National Cancer Registry Week,  April 13- 17.

Lilly Oncology on Canvas was created in 2004 by Eli Lilly and Company as a way to celebrate the experiences of those whose lives have been touched by cancer. The competition invites people diagnosed with any type of cancer, their families and friends, cancer advocates, health care providers, as well as artists and art students, to express their own cancer journeys.

Participants in this art competition come from all over the world to express, through art and in narrative, the life-affirming changes that give their cancer journey meaning. The Goshen exhibit will include a selection from the thousands of pieces of art in the 2008 contest.

Wendy Manchester, Cancer Registrar at the Goshen Center for Cancer Care worked with Eli Lilly and Company to bring the exhibit to Goshen Health System. This is the second year the cancer center has brought the international exhibit to Elkhart County.

"This exhibit will be an inspiring experience for cancer survivors and the general public," said Manchester. "Every piece has been prepared by someone whose life has been touched by cancer."

To celebrate the arrival of the exhibit, Lilly Oncology on Canvas: Expressions of a Cancer Journey, Goshen Center for Cancer Care and Goshen Cancer Survivor Network are inviting area cancer survivors and the community to a welcome reception, "Healing Through the Arts," on April 14 at 7 p.m. in the Arbor Conference Center of Goshen General Hospital, 200 High Park Ave., Goshen, Ind.

The evening will include classical piano selections, a musical performance by Goshen Center for Cancer Care's Dr. James Wheeler and his family, refreshments and special guest speaker Kathy Oyer.

Oyer, former executive director of the Indianapolis Academy of Music and former assistant professor of music at Goshen College, will speak on Healing through Music and give a brief demonstration on therapeutic music.

The April 14 reception is free and open to the public. The collection will also be at Goshen General Hospital from April 14 -16 for viewing by general public at no cost. Goshen General Hospital's Main Lobby hours are from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. 

The exhibit coincides with National Cancer Registry Week, recognizing that quality cancer data is central to the nation's cancer fighting efforts - and that cancer registrars are the first link in capturing data on patients diagnosed with cancer.

"Cancer affects each person in a unique way," Manchester said. "Through this artwork, each and every one of us can share the joys, the sorrows and the ultimate triumphs these patients have experienced."

For more information about the exhibit, visit www.lillyoncologyoncanvas.com.

About Goshen Center for Cancer Care:
The Goshen Center for Cancer Care is a leader in innovative cancer treatment. They were among the first to adopt a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to cancer treatment. They offer holistic programs for strengthening minds as well as bodies, place a premium on family involvement and spiritual needs, and encourage patients to play a decision-making role in treatment selection. Through this integrative team approach, the center provides medical, radiation, nuclear and surgical oncology as well as naturopathic medicine.
The Goshen Center for Cancer Care is involved in, and sponsors, a number of clinical trials. Additionally, prevention, screening, diagnostic and treatment trials are conducted at the Goshen Center for Cancer Care, as well as quality of life trials and genetic trials. Clinical trials offered include treatments for breast cancer, colon cancer, Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, lung cancer, esophageal cancer, head and neck cancer, liver cancer, melanoma, myeloma, prostate cancer and pancreatic cancer. To find out more about the Goshen Center for Cancer Care or Goshen Health System, call 866-561-4673 or visit www.goshencancer.org.

About Goshen Health System:
Goshen Health System is a not-for-profit provider of health care that includes Goshen General Hospital, The Goshen Center for Cancer Care, Park Home Medical Equipment, PrimeCare Physician Network, The Retreat Women's Health Center and Indiana Lakes Managed Care Organization. The health system is an affiliate partner of Clarian Health, which includes Indiana University Hospital, Methodist Hospital of Indianapolis and Riley Hospital for Children. For more information about this story or any related to Goshen Health System, contact Bridget Levitz, Public Relations Coordinator, at 574-535-2776 or visit www.goshenhealth.org.