Rockville, MD—The Association of Cancer Care Centers (ACCC) announced today that Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) Health System, VCU Massey Cancer Center in Richmond, Va., is a recipient of a 2022 ACCC Innovator Award. This award recognizes VCU Health System’s medical-legal partnership, which is addressing social determinants of health that have a remedy in civil law.
Through a collaboration between legal and healthcare professionals to help patients with cancer resolve social and environmental factors that contribute to health disparities, this medical-legal partnership assists patients and families with estate planning services like bedside wills, powers of attorney, and advance directives, as well as insurance and employment (e.g., Family and Medical Leave Act, wage loss, etc.), housing, consumer, family, immigration, and education law issues.
The medical-legal partnership also works with local Richmond-based organizations like CancerLINC to support patients with other financial and community-based needs. “This assistance gives people peace of mind with the realization that their families are taken care of, so the patient can focus on getting well and being with their loved ones,” said Allison Held, JD, associate general counsel and director of VCU’s medical-legal partnership.
Held will speak at the ACCC 39th National Oncology Conference about the successes and challenges she and her team experienced developing and implementing VCU’s medical-legal partnership, including how its services have expanded across the health system. Learn more about this program on the ACCCBuzz blog and CANCER BUZZ podcast, then register to attend the National Oncology Conference this October 12-14 in West Palm Beach, Fla.
The ACCC Innovator Awards spotlight forward-thinking ACCC Member Programs that have developed and implemented creative and cost-effective solutions to deliver patient-centered care. ACCC has recognized five winners this year, including VCU Health System, VCU Massey Cancer Center, that are tackling challenges ranging from oral oncolytic tracking to improve treatment adherence to expansion of the multidisciplinary cancer care team to include primary care providers.
ACCC Innovator Award winners demonstrate the ability to advance the goals of improving access, quality, and value in cancer care delivery, while also providing replicable solutions for other cancer programs and practices.
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At the 2026 ASCO Annual Meeting, the Louisiana Oncology Society received the ASCO Jeffrey C Ward Affiliate Advocacy Award for advancing critical advocacy priorities that have translated into meaningful legislative victories. The Iowa Oncology Society and Washington State Medical Oncology Society were also recognized for their advocacy efforts in 2025 at the meeting, receiving second place awards.
