C4's Purpose Statement: Everyone deserves a life free from the burden of colorectal cancer (CRC). C4 is committed to ensuring that all Californians have the awareness, education, and access needed to prevent, detect, and treat this disease.
GOALS |
1. Lower the incidence and mortality rates of colorectal cancer in California. |
2. Increase colorectal cancer screening rates across California. |
3. Enhance public awareness of colorectal cancer prevention, risk reduction, and screening options. |
4. Ensure access to high quality and timely colorectal cancer screening and treatment. |
5. Promote health equity throughout the cancer care continuum. |
6. Strengthen colorectal cancer education for healthcare providers and health systems. |
7. Advocate for policy reforms to reduce the burden of colorectal cancer care. |
C4 is a statewide, 501-c(3) all-volunteer non-profit organization consisting of academic clinicians, Kaiser physicians, public health practitioners (nonprofits, regional and state health departments), CRC survivors and advocates, researchers, clinicians working for or with Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC), and CA tribal nations representatives. We are united in our mission to save lives and reduce suffering from colorectal cancer in all Californians with a strong focus on making it easier for patients to access the care they need in a timely fashion.
Specific Needs:
Support for C4 Community Grants: Each increment of $15,000 supports 1 health system to focus on improving access to care for a year, beginning at education and screening, for colorectal cancer. This program has currently distributed $885,435 in small grants to 91 health systems. Outcomes are typically related to improvements in screening rates as reported to the federal government. Efforts also promote improvements in the stage of diagnosis (lower stage, earlier in cancer development) that have better long term outcomes if cancer is present.
Bringing the Screen Your Gut - Save Your Butt (SYGSYB) race to NorCal: Our successful SYGSYB-San Diego is ready to expand to NorCal, bringing awareness and community outreach to the Sacramento region. We are also expanding the race distance options, including a 1mi walk, and timed 5k and 10k runs. The NorCal race will be on the UC Davis Campus on Sunday, May 17, 2026.
Sacramento Regional Colorectal Cancer Health Systems Conference: C4 in collaboration with the CA Department of Public Health/CA Dialogue on Cancer and the American Cancer Society hosted an annual roundtable that focused on regional best practices within the major health systems and community clinics in the 5-county region. The most recent roundtable was held in 2019 and drew 28 organizations from 5 counties to share best practices and challenges to access to CRC care. Covid-19 disrupted these meetings; C4 wants to evolve this event into a Conference in 2027 and all odd years going forward. Est. Cost $15,000.
C4 customized community outreach materials that are culturally and linguistically appropriate. In particular, the concerning rise in early onset colorectal cancer cases, specifically for those under 45, before screening is recommended, suggests messaging to both community members and physicians caring for these patients needs to be improved so early warning signs are appropriately followed up. C4 has the expertise to develop the content but design and printing for outreach (patients and physicians) can be costly. Estimated cost: $6,000.
Videos & Production team: C4 has established a new Community Advisory Council, C4 Unfiltered, composed of CRC patients, survivors, advocates, and caregivers working to provide a community voice to the goals of C4. We want to capture their experiences to better engage the community through video stories with the intent of having meaningful statewide impact. Estimated cost: $25,000.
More information about our C4 Community Grants:
C4 Community Grants program has served as a vital resource for CA FQHCs working to improve screening and followup treatment related to colorectal cancer since its inception in 2013 through evidence-based interventions (EBI). This model system promotes linkage of community health partners to resources and specialty services that fall outside care provisions within FQHC. The aim is that these organizations can then provide the full spectrum of care to patients identified as needing secondary confirmatory colonoscopies and other care as needed. In addition, these funds provide additional CRC-specific resources to help those FQHC funded through our jointly administered Breast and Colorectal Cancer Screening Implementation Project (BCCSIP) where organizations have a mandate to improve screening for both breast and colorectal cancer but are limited in expending funds towards CRC. Through BCCSIP, we have released an additional $537,696 to 28 FQHC, for a total for both programs of $1.4 Million to 119 organizations throughout CA.