Eisai Expands Magnolia Meals at Home Program to Help People Living with Thyroid Cancer

Magnolia Meals at Home®, a program that delivers nutritious meals at no-cost to patients living with breast cancer and their families, is now helping those living with thyroid cancer in the Westwood-Hillsadale areas. Sponsored by Eisai, the program aims to ease the burden on families by eliminating the need to prepare some meals, enabling loved ones to spend more quality time together. Since its launch approximately three years ago, the service has helped more than one thousand families in New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Massachusetts and North Carolina.

Meal time is an important part of keeping families close, a time to recharge and catch up on the day,” said Will Pulley, operations coordinator at Cornucopia Cancer Support Center. “The healthy meals provided by Magnolia Meals at Home help patients maintain a sense of normalcy when their daily routines have been disrupted by a cancer diagnosis. Enabling families to focus on each other rather than meal preparation can help to provide the emotional support needed to weather this difficult time.”

This novel program is a collaboration between Eisai Magnolia® – Partners Along the Patient Journey, CancerCare®, Cancer Support Community®, Cornucopia Cancer Support CenterTM and Meals on Wheels America. Eligible participants will receive up to 2 monthly home meal deliveries, each of which includes up to 10 meals for family members upon request. Eligible participants can enroll through the respective advocacy organization in their area. The meal deliveries are organized by local Meals on Wheels programs, and Eisai employees volunteer to help deliver the meals to families.

“Finding the energy to cook healthy meals is a challenge when faced with the long haul of stage four cancer,” said Patty Arges of Durham, North Carolina. “I found the Magnolia Meals at Home program very helpful. Having something quick to microwave allowed me to spend my energy going out to activities and to support groups rather than spending it at home cooking or shopping at the grocery store. They were also delicious.”

Thyroid cancer patients are eligible to enroll if they meet at least one of the following criteria*+¥:

· Currently undergoing chemotherapy, radiation therapy (excluding radiation iodine treatment), hormone therapy or targeted therapy

· Has completed radiation iodine treatment‡

· Underwent surgery, chemotherapy or radiation in the past 3 months

· Has been discharged from a hospital (admission was cancer related) in the last 3 months

· Receiving adjuvant or neoadjuvant treatment

*This can include men or women diagnosed with thyroid cancer
+There are no requirements for financial need to participate in the program
¥Patients must live in qualified zip codes in order to receive meals
‡Patients currently participating in radiation iodine treatment are not eligible for the program due to dietary restrictions associated with treatment

“This program truly embodies Eisai’s human health care (hhc) mission, which puts patients at the center of everything we do,” said Sheryl Lapidus, associate director, Corporate Advocacy at Eisai, Inc. “Through their participation in the Magnolia Meals at Home program, Eisai employees are able to gain a new perspective and appreciation for cancer patients and their families, the very people they strive to help each day through the work that they do.”

To learn more about enrollment criteria, please visit www.MagnoliaMealsAtHome.com or contact CancerCare directly.

Important contact information for enrollment in Magnolia Meals at Home

In New Jersey and New York, please contact:
Kathy Nugent, LCSW
CancerCare
141 Dayton Street • Ridgewood, New Jersey 07450
Phone: 1-201-301-6809
Toll-free: 1-800-813-HOPE ext. 6809
knugent@cancercare.org