A patient's experience following a brain tumor diagnosis is shaped by the quality of care they receive, the science that informs that treatment, and, perhaps less visibly, by policy. Whether a patient can see a specialist via telehealth or has to travel hours for an appointment, whether enough federal research funding is available to advance promising therapies to clinical trials, whether academic medical centers can use federal grants to cover the full indirect costs that sustain the research infrastructure behind that work, whether there is a sufficient pipeline to train the next generation of neuro-oncologists and specialized nurses — the answer to each of these questions is shaped by decisions made in congressional hearing rooms and federal agency offices. For clinicians and researchers whose days are consumed by patient care and scientific work, the legislative and regulatory process can feel like a distant concern and a daunting one to approach.

Organized jointly by the National Brain Tumor Society and the SNO, this session will explore why the brain tumor community, patients and clinicians alike, have a meaningful role to play in shaping brain tumor public policy. Panelists will walk attendees through the regulatory landscape that shapes brain tumor care today, what the brain tumor community is already doing to influence it, and how SNO members can meaningfully engage regardless of their prior experience with advocacy.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize advocacy as a professional responsibility complementary to clinical and scientific work.
• Learn about SNO's newly launched advocacy training series/fellowship, designed to help members build the skills and confidence to engage effectively in the policy process.
• Appreciate the leverage that organized clinician and patient voices have in the federal policy process.
• Understand SNO's current policy priorities and the work of its Public Policy Committee.
• Identify concrete opportunities to engage in advocacy through SNO and its partner organizations.