Cancer Research UK has launched an online chat forum for cancer patients to swap stories and share experiences on how to cope with such a devastating disease.
But Cancer Chat is a forum with a difference：it has an information safety net.
This means that a Cancer Research UK team will keep a watching brief to ensure that patients are not subjected to rogue “cancer cures” or scientifically unsound information.
Anyone can have access to the messages posted on Cancer Chat but if people wish to post a message they will need to register.
And Rebekah Gibbs, cancer patient and star of TV's Casualty has pledged her support for the new project. “I think Cancer Chat is a brilliant idea,” she said. “I have written a public diary about what I went through with breast cancer and I have had such a heart-warming response from other people going through the same thing.
“The idea of a Cancer Chat forum means you can share information about treatment and side effects and you can really open up about your feelings online in a way that can be difficult when talking to close friends and family. And with Cancer Research UK monitoring the forum people can be reassured about the quality of information being exchanged.”
Cancer Chat will also encourage its users to check out any cancer questions on its CancerHelp UK website which is specially designed to give patients and their families 6,000 pages of up-to-date information that is easy to understand and explains a wide range of treatments for different types of cancer and gives details of clinical trials. There is also a UK database of cancer clinical trials.
The award-winning website attracts around one million visitors a month and Cancer Research UK hopes that some of these visitors will also want to post comments on the Cancer Chat forum.
For those who do not have access to computers and have questions about cancer, the charity's team of cancer information nurses are available during office hours to talk over patients’ concerns on the phone.
譯文：
英國癌症研究機構已經為癌症患者推出了一個線上聊天論壇，交換故事並分享如何應對這樣一種毀滅性疾病的經驗。
但癌症聊天是一個有區別的論壇：它有一個資訊保安網。
這意味著，英國“癌症研究”研究小組將保持觀察簡報，以確保患者不會遭受流氓“癌症治癒”或科學不健全的資訊。
任何人都可以訪問在癌症聊天釋出的訊息，但如果有人希望釋出訊息，他們將需要註冊。
而利百加吉布斯（Rebekah Gibbs），癌症病人和電視臺的“傷員”（Stars of Casualty）的明星都表示支援這個新專案。 “我認為癌症聊天是一個輝煌的想法，”她說。 “我已經寫了關於我經歷了乳腺癌的公開日記，而且我也遇到過這樣一個令人心動的.迴應，其他人也經歷了同樣的事情。
“癌症聊天論壇的想法意味著您可以分享關於治療和副作用的資訊，您可以在與親密的朋友和家人交談時以很難的方式開放網路感受。隨著英國“癌症研究”（UK Research）監測論壇，人們可以放心交換資訊的質量。
癌症聊天也將鼓勵其使用者檢查其在CancerHelp英國網站上的任何癌症問題，該網站專門為患者及其家屬提供6000頁最新資訊，易於理解，並解釋了廣泛的治療方法不同型別的癌症，並提供臨床試驗的細節。還有一個英國癌症臨床試驗資料庫。
屢獲殊榮的網站每月吸引約一百萬名訪問者，而“癌症研究英國”（Cancer Research UK）希望其中一些訪客也想在“癌症聊天”論壇上發表評論。
對於那些無法訪問計算機並對癌症有疑問的人士，慈善團體的癌症資訊護士可在辦公時間內通過電話與患者的疑慮進行交流。
練習：
1. Cancer Chat is different from other forums in that
A it has the support of a famous actress.
B it is a source of reliable information.
C it provides a huge amount of information.
D it attracts a great number of visitors.
h is NOT true of Rebekah Gibbs？
A She is a well-known figure in Britain.
B She got breast cancer some time ago.
C She thinks highly of Cancer Chat.
D She has written a private diary.
the statements about the messages posted on Cancer Chat are true EXCEPT
A they are available to all visitors.
B their writers get paid for them.
C they concern not just treatments and side effects.
D they are also an emotional outlet for their writers.
4. CancerHelp UK is a website that
A offers lots of information on cancer treatment and clinical trials.
B attracts numerous visitors.
C has won an award.
D all of the above.
5. “The charity” in the last line but one refers to
A Cancer Research UK.
B Cancer Chat.
C CancerHelp UK.
D Tv's Casualty.
答案：1. B 2.D 3.B 4.D 5.A
