our Community
Toll-free helpline
Peer support for people concerned about hereditary cancer. All calls are confidential.
Eastern time.
noon - 2 pm |
Monday & Friday |
1 pm - 3 pm |
Wednesday |
6 pm - 8 pm |
Monday |
10 am - noon |
Tuesday - Thursday |
7 pm - 9 pm |
Tuesday - Friday |
The FORCE toll-free helpline/hotline was developed as a collaboration between the University of Pennsylvania, Abramson Cancer Center and FORCE: Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered. Initial funding for the helpline was through a grant to the Abramson Cancer Center from the Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program.
1-866-288-RISK (7475)
Call any time.
- During our hours of operation callers will be forwarded to a helpline volunteer.
- During other hours callers may leave a name and phone number and receive a call back.
Calls are answered by volunteers who can discuss issues with callers, offer referrals to resources, or match callers with another peer counselor with similar experiences.
Volunteers do not offer medical advice but share their experiences with hereditary cancer and risk and offer nonjudgmental support and resources.
An article about our
helpline was written for the Joining
FORCEs newsletter.
In June 2005, University of Pennsylvania presented a poster at the Era of Hope conference which discussed the research project measuring satisfaction and outcomes for helpline callers.
Speaking with a board-certified genetic counselor by telephone
FORCE is collaborating with Informed Medical Decisions, Inc to provide access to board-certified genetic counselors to answer your general question about genetics*. If you would like to ask a general question for a board-certified genetic counselor you can call toll-free:
866-288-7475, extension 704.
A genetic counselor from INFORMED will return your call within 48 hours.