Inside Oncology Social Work: Support, Advocacy, and Real-Life Resources

Cancer doesn’t just change lab results; it reshapes daily life. Our Virginia Oncology Associates Social Work team opens the door to whole-person care, starting at diagnosis. They show how early outreach, clear planning, and steady advocacy can turn fear into manageable steps. They share how they coordinate transportation, housing, grants, insurance, and disability applications while offering the kind of emotional support that helps patients and caregivers breathe, decide, and move forward. 
 
Throughout this episode, you’ll hear powerful, practical moments from the field: a rapid housing save that kept a parent connected to her kids, a coordinated relocation that preserved treatment access and family support, and a path from sudden job loss to financial stability through grants, Medicaid, and disability appeals. We also look straight at the quiet worries many carry: being a burden, losing control, or not being heard, and walk through tools that bring relief: caregiver naming and respite, values-based care planning, and family meetings that honor the patient’s voice. 
 
We explain why timing matters. Many resources run on clocks: public housing waitlists, SNAP approvals, Medicaid enrollment, FMLA paperwork, and Social Security reviews. Reaching out early helps you line up the right resources before a crisis hits, protecting treatment schedules and reducing financial strain.  
 
If today’s stories resonate, ask your clinical team to connect you with your social worker, or check whether oncology social work is available where you receive care. Subscribe, share this episode with someone who needs it, and leave a review to help others find support sooner.

Thank you for listening! If you're interested in hearing more from Virginia Oncology Associates, make sure to subscribe to Cancer Care Connections on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or anywhere podcasts are available, or listen online at cancercareconnections.buzzsprout.com.

Cancer Care Connections is the official podcast of Virginia Oncology Associates. For more information, visit us at VirginiaCancer.com. or find us on Facebook or Instagram at Virginia Oncology Associates.

Transcript

Host: 00:05
Welcome to Cancer Care Connections. Today you'll hear from the voices behind VOA's Social Work team, professionals shaped by personal experiences and deep community roots who guide patients and families through treatment, transportation obstacles, housing emergencies, and the conversations many avoid. When cancer shows up, it brings far more than a diagnosis. It brings fear, tough choices, financial strain, and the quiet worry of becoming a burden. Together we unpack what whole person care looks like if life suddenly turns upside down. We'll talk about naming the caregiver role, finding support without guilt, and creating a plan that restores control and eases anxiety. You'll also hear real stories from the field: advocacy wins, urgent housing solutions, and families finding clarity in the hardest moments. This is the human side of oncology care and the people who make sure no one faces it alone.

Cheryl: 00:60
Cancer affects more than the body. It touches relationships, routines, and emotions. That's why Virginia Oncology Associates' Social Work team exists. In this episode, you'll meet the social workers who help patients and caregivers find clarity, comfort, and practical support. They'll share what they do, why it matters, and how they show up when people need it the most. Thank you all so much for joining us today. Thank you. Thank you for having us. Yeah, so we have here today the five members of the VOA Social Work team. And I was so excited to be here. I know my voice isn't 100%, but I wanted to make sure I had this opportunity to speak with all of you together. So thank you for bearing with me and coming here to talk with us about what you do. What I want to do is start off with hearing why you do what you do. Roshonda, I'm going to start with you. Can you introduce yourself? Tell us how you got to VOA and why this work is so important to you.

Roshonda: 01:60
My name is Roshonda, and I am the Social Work Supervisor here at Virginia Oncology Associates. Also through my career, I actually did research as well. But what really brought me into the social work profession is my care for people, but more importantly, just recognizing that there were a lot of different barriers or needs that people need support in. And when I started my career as a medical assistant and seeing their cancer journey and some of the struggles they went through,  that just prompted me to go back to school and become a social worker. And when I became a social worker, VOA,  created this position because they saw the patient's needs. So I guess for me, what brought me to this, I would say is just really seeing that people have a difficult time navigating a complex system. And I really identified that as a social worker, I can be able to help them with the resources in order to ease the burden, if it be emotionally or mentally. So my passion is just for people and showing up in a time that they're the most vulnerable and being able to humanize it. 

Cheryl: 03:12
Roshonda, thank you. Yeah. Christy, how about you? What brought you to VOA and why this work?

Christy: 03:18
Good morning. Yes, my name is Christy. I am the oncology social worker for the Peninsula region for Virginia Oncology. So I cover Williamsburg, Hampton, as well as Newport News Clinics. What got me into social work many moons ago was my own childhood experiences. I experienced a lot of things when I was of a younger age, and I didn't really have the resources or know about the resources or have someone help me navigate to find those resources. So that's really what originally brought me into the social work field. And then I did a couple different jobs. You know, there's so many things you can do as a social worker, so many avenues. And I think I found hospital social work, which I loved. And then that kind of brought me into oncology social work again with some personal experiences. My grandmother did have breast cancer, and they did have social workers as well. And I kind of was able to see that avenue. And I was very much drawn to that. And just really helping,  them navigate what's out there, how we can help them, how we can support those patients.

Cheryl: 04:20
Christy, thank you. How about you, Elisabeth? What brought you to VOA and why do you do this work?

Elisabeth: 04:27
Yes. Um, so my name is Elisabeth, one of the oncology Social Workers, and I serve as Brock as well as Princess Anne. What brought me into social work initially was more so coming from neighborhoods where I'm at, not the most wealthy or things of that sort, very middle class, and the experiences that I've seen within my own family. I'm thinking piggy-backing off of Christy, minimum resources or not educated on what is out there. I found that I was kind of always in the middle of like doing research for my family members, just educating within my family. I'm always being that go-to person. So just really finding that for me really helped me to kind of guide me into social work. Another thing with me is a summer camp that I went to when I was younger. They poured a lot into us as far as education, resources, and things of that sort. One of the guys there, he was actually a social worker. So he really introduced me to it. And I really honestly just kind of came right into it. It was a perfect fit for me. I love to advocate. I love to collaborate with my patients. So it was just the perfect spot for me. So this is why I'm here.

Cheryl: 05:28
Thank you. How about you, Nicole?

Nicole: 05:30
Good morning. I'm Nicole. I am the Social Worker for the four Western Tidewater offices. And I like to say that I didn't choose social work, but social work chose me. Um, I've always been that family member or friend that people tend to come to for advice. And what do you think about this? And so social work was just a natural choice for me when I was in college. And then after college, I wanted to do medical social work. And so coming to VOA was part of the journey. I had a sister who passed away in 2018. She was a hematology patient. So coming to VOA and being a social worker for oncology and hematology, it just is a full circle moment because now I get to help people who are experiencing things that my sister did. And I hope to be the type of social worker that I would have wanted her to have in her journey. And so I just love helping people and I'm excited about what I can contribute to an oncology team.

Cheryl: 06:24
Thank you. And KeAuna, how about you?

KeAuna: 06:27
Hi, I'm KeAuna Richmond. I cover the Norfolk and Virginia Beach Offices at Virginia Oncology Associates. What started social work background for me was growing up, my grandmother put me on the hospitality committee at church. And I was the youngest in charge. So taking care of starting coat drives and food drives and things like that, and finding resources for those in a community was part of me growing up. At the time, I didn't know that was actual social work. One of the advisors on the committee, she was like, I'm going bring you to work with me. And she was a social worker and I love what she did. And every summer she would take me for a couple of days and take me to work with her. And I just loved what she did. So when I went to school, I selected social work as my background. And um, I continued to do it as  my master's and graduate, and I was like, I'm gonna do medical social work. And I was doing medical social work since I've graduated in 2018. And what brought me to oncology social work was my father having a battle of cancer and helping him navigate those different things. And he's of Hispanic background. And with my own family trying to get them and advocate for him, it resonated with me that most people are new to this oncology world and they need someone to advocate for them. So that's what brought me into the oncology realm.

Cheryl: 08:01
It is clear that you all are doing the work you do because it is a passion. It is so clear. So thank you for the work that you're doing. I think people might not realize that you are there as a resource. So, Elisabeth, I'm gonna start with you. Can you describe your role as a VOA social worker in one sentence for someone who just doesn't know what your team does?

Elisabeth: 08:26
Yeah. So I would say as a social worker within VOA, we walk with patients and their families through whatever the diagnosis brings, making sure they just feel supported and just understood, and just making sure that they know that they're not alone. So if I could sum it up in one sentence, that's what it will be.

Cheryl: 08:44
That's wonderful. And obviously, this is a tough time for patients, for their families, and they may not even realize that this is something open to them. Roshonda, what do you believe makes VOA social work unique in cancer care? Because several of you have talked about being drawn to the oncology part of this work. So can you address that a little bit, Roshonda?

Roshonda: 09:09
For us as a social work team, what makes us unique is that we focus on the whole journey, right? Not just the treatment. We meet our patients and also our caregivers at the initial diagnosis, and we walk alongside them and identify whether it's emotional or say transportation or different barriers that they might be experiencing in the moment. And we help create that plan with their own wishes, right? We're meeting them where they're at, and we are walking alongside them throughout their whole journey. So I feel that's what makes the OA social work team unique because we start with them at the initial and we go with them throughout their continuum of care. And a lot of times, because we have met them at their initial point or initial contact with the physician, we are kind of able to kind of see, not say the future, but we help them as far as kind of create a plan that if different obstacles come up within their kind of journey, that we can kind of identify the resources that are gonna meet them where they're at. So meet their resource needs.

Cheryl: 10:11
I think that brings me to another question as far as like timeline. Many people might think that you come into the picture when things are really, really bad, where the crisis point has already happened. And so, KeAuna, I want to address you with this. When should a patient or a caregiver reach out to someone like you? At what point in that journey? In the beginning, in the middle, when can they reach out to you for help?

KeAuna: 10:40
We would love for patients to reach out in the beginning. However, sometimes this new diagnosis is just so new that they have to process that. They really need help with the journey that they're on. And so sometimes when we do get patients and they're ready to accept and are comfortable with getting help from a social worker, they are in crisis at this time. So we would just accept where they're at at that time of their journey and walk with them through the time of their diagnosis and accepting and going through the different avenues of needing different resources and trying to navigate the resources that they would need at the time. And just offering emotional support through the journey and advocating for them with different resources, maybe it's financial resources or caregiver resources. When looking into different programs and financial resources that they may need, they all have different processes. For instance, if someone comes for housing needs to get them into adequate housing, it may take six months to a year for different public housing. And sometimes that may look different for navigating social security. That process may take three to four months. So just starting in the beginning and accepting that you do need a social worker would be ideal. But sometimes we just have to take the patients where they are in those moments.

Cheryl: 12:17
And you help them from whatever point they reach out to you onward. But are you also saying that it's not too early once they get a diagnosis to reach out to somebody on your team?

KeAuna: 12:29
No, it's not too early because some resources they could be put on a wait list for, and you know, you want the patients to be able to accept, I was working full time, now I have to accept the fact that I have to get maybe food stamps. I have to apply for food stamps, or I have to go get FMLA for my job. That there are different processes for those. A food stamp application may take 30 to 45 days. I may have to now get Medicaid or insurance to cover me, and that may take 30 to 45 days. So those are different resources that patients have to accept when they are newly diagnosed. When they can come into one employment and their whole life has changed from I was working full-time, now I am working part-time or I can no longer work. That acceptance process may take them a whole two months, and now they may have just fallen into a crisis because they didn't act on it or communicate that these things are going on in their personal life because that's just something that's totally new for them.

Cheryl: 13:40
We also know that patients cannot do this alone. They have family, and the family is affected greatly by this. How do you support caregivers who may be carrying this load and feel like they have to do it all on their own? Nicole, I'm gonna go to you for that.

Nicole: 13:56
So caregivers are super important. And I think one of the first steps would be for a family member to identify themselves as a caregiver, right? So I'm not just a spouse, I'm not just a mom, I'm not, you know, a sibling, but now my role has changed. I am a caregiver. So it's important for us to be able to speak to that, the family member or friend to identify themselves as a caregiver. And once they can put language to that, then we can teach them how to be intentional about caring for themselves. Because we often hear or say you can't pour from an empty cup. And so oftentimes we've seen where caregivers, their health may decline because now I'm no longer taking care of myself because I have this new obligation. And so we want to try to lessen the burden. And so we're here for the patient, but of course we're also here for the caregiver. And so we teach them and provide resources like support groups for family members and caregivers. Maybe you need a respite day where somebody can come in and help take care of your family member or your patient so that you can have a day to yourself. What does that look like for you to just take a walk and checking in with the family member or the caregiver is so important? And so sometimes it's just saying, How are you doing? And giving them a moment to share what this feels like and how this has also impacted their lives and being able to support everybody that's involved.

Cheryl: 15:13
Somebody hearing this right now felt that, right? They felt the aloneness. And I am imagining it is a comfort to know that there's someone they can reach out to to get that support, someone to talk to, even, right? At a really, really difficult time. Yes. So I wanted to talk about fears. Christy, I'm gonna ask you this question. What's a common feeling or a fear that you know patients don't always say out loud, but you hear this, you hear it all the time. And so these are some of the things that uh, you know, is swirling around in people's heads. Talk to us about some of those things that we should be made aware of.

Christy: 15:51
Absolutely. I think this is gonna kind of go off of Nicole's response as well. I think a big thing that patients don't say, but we can- we can hear it like you say, under- underlining; their scared of being a burden. I think they are very worried about their caregiver or spouse or mother or who have you, of their health or their lifestyle changing. I think there's some guilt there that we hear a lot. You know, again, that their illness will reshape  not only their life, but their family member or caregiver's life, you know, looks like, or even beyond that. Work. They're a manager or what have you, and they can't be there anymore. That's going to affect their work team and their work life balance and all of those things. So that affects them. So I think that was the biggest one that I can identify when meeting with patients. Another one, you know, fear of losing control of their of their body, of their health. Let's say they don't have a caregiver or a family member. Who can they talk to? And so we definitely want to be that person, you know, not just identifying them as a person with a diagnosis. You know, yes, we're meeting with them because they are a cancer/ hematology patient, but they're also a human. There's a story behind there. So I think that's important for our patients and our family members to know is we're here for them, to meet with them, and just even listen. You know, I'll tell my patients all the time, just if you're here for an appointment with the doctor and you just need 20 minutes to come in and just have an ear, please. I won't even respond if you don't need me to. You can just come in and and just talk to me. I'm totally open with that all of the time. So I think, yeah, the burden and then the fear of losing themselves, losing their lifestyle.

Cheryl: 17:28
Yeah. It is really amazing to know that there is a listening ear if they need it, because sometimes it's not going to be in their own circle that they find that. I want to get to some stories, if I can. To hear about the impact that your team members have had on patients and caregivers. Nicole, if I may start with you, if you could talk with us about a story, a moment of relief that you were able to give to a patient or a family member through something that you or a team member was able to carry out.

Nicole: 18:02
Sure. There's so many. And so often we as social workers have this idea that we're going to make a big impact. And so oftentimes the patients end up impacting us, right? Um, but we had a patient, I'll just call her Shannon, who was wanting to relocate to Virginia to be a patient at Virginia Oncology because her two young children were living in Virginia because they were staying with their dad. And so this was one that we had the opportunity to start very early on, building that relationship and building that rapport and figuring out how we're gonna make this work, making sure she had a good transition. And so she had taken a job here in Virginia, relocated, was staying with a friend, and early on realized that that was not gonna be a good fit for her. She just did not have the support that she needed, could not work because of her medic- her medical needs, and found herself after a short period of time of moving, being homeless. And it just broke our hearts. She was actually living in the park. And so we were able to find resources to put her in a hotel for an extended period of time. She was able to spend time with her children in the hotel. And then we had to have some really hard conversations. So as a social worker, I was able to provide some supportive counseling and say, I know this is what we thought it was going to look like, but things have changed. You don't have the support that you need. And so maybe we have to go to a plan B. Plan B was she had family who lived out of state that was wanting her to come and welcoming her with open arms. So at that point, we had to find resources to see how we could get her, after much counseling and much let's realign your goals and your plan of care and making those contacts, we had I had to get the whole entire interdisciplinary team involved. Her current oncologist at Virginia Oncology at the time was involved. The medical assistants were involved, reaching out to the oncology offices in her area, what was going to be the best fit for her. I was reaching out to her family members saying, are you guys gonna support her? Here's what this looks like. And so we were able to coordinate all of that in a very short period of time. We got her a ticket. She was able to get on the bus. She called me twice since she's been in Ohio, this is where she relocated, say, hey, I have the support that I need. I'm able to now be a healthy mom for my children, maybe not as close as I would like to, but not without hope. And so that was so heartwarming for me to know that, hey, this didn't look like how we had initially planned, but how can we now support her and change directions, do it quickly, do it safely, and do it where she's healthy and now we'll have the opportunity to be in treatment and be able to be the mom that she wants to be for her children.

Cheryl: 20:35
Amazing. These  stories matter so much to help people understand the impact of the work that you do. Thank you for sharing that. Christy, how about you? Do you have a story that you can share with us?

Christy: 20:47
Absolutely. I think kind of like Nicole says, it's really hard to pick just one. There's so many. I think the biggest joy for me that I have learned in this journey of mine is walking through the treatment area and seeing patients. And good morning, Christy, you know, or good morning, Mrs. Smith. That has been really special for me. I think in my other experiences, it's really just been, you know, treat them while they're in the hospital and they go home. Here, like Roshonda just said, we treat them through their entire journey. So you really do build those relationships. So that's been really special to me. As I mentioned before, you know, being thanked for seeing or listening to a patient because they aren't just a diagnosis. That has been very important to my patients and they have thanked me many times for that. So that's been really special. And really just helping them, you know, financially, we can have grant assistance and things like that. They're just not aware of. They don't know they can reach out to the American Cancer Society or, you know, things like that. So really helping them through that, that piece as well has been really special. If I had to pick one, I think a good one for me is I have built a very good relationship. Again, I'll just call her Mrs. Smith. She was working full time up in DC at a very good job. And all of a sudden, got let go. No warning, was just let go. And she did not know what to do, where to turn. She was a breast cancer patient. So I was able to reach out to those resources that deal with specifically just breast cancer, as well as other ones to, you know, get her on food share, get her on food stamps. Sorry. I'm from Wisconsin. It's food share. But, you know, all of those resources helping her apply for Medicaid. We help helped her apply for disability. And she comes back a couple months later, she got denied. Let's do it again. Let's try again. Because it can take a long process, as KeAuna mentioned. It can, it can take a few times. So that has been really special, just like I say, working with her from the beginning and really just helping her guide. And she's a great advocate for herself as well. She will reach out and, you know, ask if there's anything out there I can help her with. And she did now get a job, which is awesome. She gets to drive children for a school system. So she loves it. So that's really great. That was that's probably really one of the really special ones to me is that one. But like I say, anybody, anybody needing assistance and help, and just that's so great. They're so grateful. They're so appreciative. And unfortunately, sometimes you don't find that these days.

Cheryl: 23:09
Yeah.

Christy: 23:10
So that's that's really awesome in this field.

Cheryl: 23:13
Thank you so much, Christy. How about you, Elisabeth?

Elisabeth: 23:16
To piggyback off of everybody it hard to pinpoint one. But just if I could say maybe generalize one thing, like just from that initial time, seeing that shift when patients come to us, the majority of the time is it during that crisis. So they're just like at their wit's end. They don't know which way to turn. They're really just at a standstill. So seeing from that initial crisis, being able to develop the rapport with them, provide them with the resources, provide that supportive counseling, and just being along that journey with them and then seeing that turnaround. They now are doing things that they once loved to do. They're finding themselves again. They're not letting that diagnosis define them. So that's very meaningful for me just to kind of see that progression over the course of a month or however long we are meeting. And honestly, just building the rapport. Like my patients come sit in my office. Hey, Elisabeth, what's going on? Or what are you doing, Miss Wiggins, or whatever the case may be. And just providing that space for them to be comfortable to do that and know I am truly here to support them. And I'm honestly working with them no matter what. They know they can pick up the phone to call me. So yeah, that's just a great feeling and meaningful to me to just be able to be in that space to do so.

Cheryl: 24:29
Elisabeth, thank you. How about you, KeAuna?

KeAuna: 24:32
Like everyone said, it's just the building of relationships with each of your patients that you get to work with. And just having them call sometimes and say, thank you. Just out of the blue, you just get a random call. Just like, "thank you. You just don't know what you really did. You helped me out a lot." And to you, it's just like something that you do every day, but it's become a normal for you to be a helping agent. But for them, it just meant so much for you to change and help them navigate something important in their life at the time of a major crisis. An important case that I worked on was one of my first patients here. He was in full-fledged housing crisis. He was getting his home demolished in two weeks. And during that time, he was not working, didn't have any income, didn't have anything. So me being open and honest with him of what resources we could provide, what I could honestly do for him was important for him, and not me telling him exactly what he wanted to hear and giving him false hopes. And so in that building that relationship, we were able to say, these are the resources we're gonna call, and I'm gonna walk you through whether it was a shelter, whether it was a housing resources, the crisis hotline, different things that I was trying to help him navigate the homelessness part of his crisis. But sometimes the crises have different faces to them and different dynamics to them. Not only were you facing homelessness, but you were also needing finances. Helping him do at this same crisis get social security, writing the letter to expedite his social security case and just seeing that work out and looking for resources to get him into a housing dwelling, which was an efficiency at the time. And he was able to pay it up when he did get his social security after it was expedited. He was just so ecstatic. And that for me was, it warmed my heart because I was able to help him. And if he was able to trust me in those moments, and that made me feel good. Like, okay, I really have done my part here with him. So that that was a good moment for me.

Cheryl: 26:54
KeAuna, great story. Thank you so much. And Roshonda, how about you? Do you have a story that you can share, a meaningful moment that you've been able to create through your work?

Roshonda: 27:04
Yeah. So for me, I just would say a moment that stays with me was a patient who had advanced cancer along with her spouse and her daughter. And one of the moments that I guess sticks out to me is that um during the end of our kind of discussion, the patient looked at me and said, "Thank you". You let the cat out of the bag. And I said, "Well, what do you mean by that?" And what she said was, " I've been carrying this emotional load", right? Um, because she unfortunately wanted  to go a different treatment route per se. And her family, you know, was really like, well, we think you, you know, we think you should choose option A. It was like option A or option B. And the patient was just in a stage in her life where she felt like I have did all I needed to do. I've already been diagnosed with advanced cancer. And I just want to live out my life the way I want to, but she didn't know how to have that conversation with her husband and her actual daughter. So those meaningful moments for me is giving the actual patient back their voice because it does matter. And for us to help families navigate a real difficult conversation, right? And I think a lot of times when we're facilitating those discussions with the family and also our patients, just seeing how we've kind of gave them a sense of relief, where one our patients or wishes are being honored, but also that the caregiver, even the family members that are also caring for their loved ones, they're feeling like they're part of actual the treatment kind of decision making. So I think that's a, you know, one of the most meaningful moments for me because we see that so often, where our patients a lot of times are carrying that emotional load, and they oftentimes have that as kind of their masses. They feel like if they let their family members know that possibly that, hey, I'm having a hard time, that family members might get scared or feel like they're a burden. So just giving the voice back to you know to both, you know, in those discussions. So that's really meaningful for me, if I can say. And that happens more than more than one time a day sometimes. So I would just say that this has been the most impactful, just watching families feel like, oh gosh, we can finally let everything out of how we're feeling. You know, and really have those difficult conversations as kind of like the silent, the silent words that are never spoken, right? So these are powerful stories.

Cheryl: 29:35
Thank you for sharing them. Roshonda, as we're wrapping up, can you talk to us about the things that you help patients and their family members with and how do they reach out for your team support?

Roshonda: 29:51
Yes, thanks for asking. So if I wanted to, you know, just as a takeaway, just knowing that our team is here, the VOA Social Work team is here for emotional and mental health support. Um, we're here for your resource coordination.  More importantly, we're here to advocate and help you navigate through a really kind of complex healthcare system, right? Um, we're here to provide you support in your initial diagnosis for you and your family and throughout your diagnosis. And we can be reached, you can definitely call our main line at 757-466-8683. But most importantly, I would say that just talk with your clinical team. Any person who's part of your clinical team knows how to get in contact with your designated social worker and we try to reach out within that 24 to 48 hour time frame. But most importantly, talking with your physician team to just kind of share that you feel like you need more support or you would like more information. Sometimes it's not just about support, it's a lot of times also about information. So you don't have the information, how do you know what you need support in? So if you just would like information and resources, please um just talk with your clinical team and they will put you in contact with the social work team.

Cheryl: 31:07
Wonderful. This is definitely a team effort. Thank you all for being here today, sharing your stories and the support that you give to patients and their families. Thank you so much.

Christy: 31:18
Thank you. Thank you so much.

Host: 31:25
Thank you for joining us today for Cancer Care Connections with the VOA social work team. If today's stories resonated with you, remember this: you don't have to navigate cancer on your own. If you're a VOA patient, talk with your clinical team and ask to be connected with your social worker. And if you receive care elsewhere, ask your provider whether oncology social work is available in your clinic. Support is here. Reach out early, reach out now. We are excited to share that in May, our VOA Social Work team will begin a mini-series, Cancer Care Connections: The Social Work Side of Care. This series explores the human side of cancer care, where small moments of compassion, honest communication, and emotional connection help patients, families, and caregivers find strength. Each episode brings together VOA Social Work, supportive care, and clinical team members to share stories, insights, and tools for resilience, purpose, and hope throughout the cancer journey. Don't forget to subscribe to our podcast via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or anywhere podcasts are available, or listen online at Cancer CareConnections.buzzprout.com. Cancer Care Connections is the official podcast of Virginia Oncology Associates. For more information, visit us at VirginiaCancer.com or find us on Facebook or Instagram at Virginia Oncology Associates.