AstraZeneca Launches New Website for People with Advanced Medullary Thyroid Cancer

Launched in Conjunction with Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month, aMTCSupport.com Offers Resources and Support for Rare Disease Community

News provided by

AstraZeneca

Sep 25, 2014, 11:25 ET

WILMINGTON, Del., Sept. 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In the United States for 2014, about 62,900 new thyroid cancer cases will be diagnosed. Medullary thyroid cancer – a rare form of cancer located in the thyroid gland at the base of the throat – represents only about three to four percent of all thyroid cancers. Of those cases, just one third will be locally advanced or metastatic disease. With Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month in full swing, AstraZeneca has launched the aMTCSupport.com online resource center to provide information and support specifically designed for people living with advanced medullary thyroid cancer (aMTC) and their loved ones.

To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, please click http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7080731-astrazeneca-amtcsupport-resources-for-advanced-medullary-thyroid-cancer/

Rob Bohning, who is living with advanced medullary thyroid cancer, is one of the people for whom aMTCSupport.com aims to provide information and resources. "When people are diagnosed with aMTC, they don't know how to begin coping with a disease about which they know so little," said Bohning. "Having an understanding of how others navigate some of the hurdles associated with this rare disease can be both comforting and motivating."

Resources currently available on aMTCSupport.com include first-person videos and information to help viewers navigate common challenges that they may encounter during the medullary thyroid cancer journey. Given some of the unique situations faced by caregivers of those living with aMTC, aMTCSupport.com also provides resources tailored to their needs. AstraZeneca plans to update aMTCSupport.com on an ongoing basis to include additional educational materials and support tools.

"Our hope is that the resources available on the website will further empower those on their journey with aMTC to live their lives as well as possible," said Gregory Keenan, MD, Vice President Medical Affairs and U.S. Head Medical Officer, AstraZeneca.

Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month is observed each September in the U.S. and was initiated by ThyCa: Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Association to raise awareness of the condition nationwide.

NOTES TO EDITORS

About AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca is a global, innovation-driven biopharmaceutical business that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription medicines, primarily for the treatment of cardiovascular, metabolic, respiratory, inflammation, autoimmune, oncology, infection and neuroscience diseases. AstraZeneca operates in over 100 countries and its innovative medicines are used by millions of patients worldwide. For more information please visit www.astrazeneca-us.com.

To view the multimedia assets associated with this release, please click http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7080731-astrazeneca-amtcsupport-resources-for-advanced-medullary-thyroid-cancer/

SOURCE AstraZeneca