At APCF, we educate, encourage and engage with men to make the best possible healthcare decisions.

About

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Mission

The Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation’s mission is to

  1. Educate Arkansans through increased awareness, distribution of resources and educational opportunities across the state;
  2. Encourage timely detection of prostate cancer; and
  3. Engage men and their families with personal guidance from the day of diagnosis through survivorship.

The Foundation implements this mission by sponsoring public education events around the state.

The Foundation’s Prostate Health Resource Center in Little Rock serves as an ongoing source of information for prostate cancer survivors and healthcare professionals. 

Staff

The Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation’s staff manages the programs and services necessary to fulfill the organization’s mission.

Chris Collier
Executive Director

Chris Collier

Executive Director

Chris Collier joined the Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation (APCF) in February 2019 as Executive Director, bringing over thirty years of experience in business, education, and nonprofit leadership to the position. He has served on and chaired numerous nonprofit boards throughout central Arkansas. Professionally, he most recently served as the Director of Organizational Development for Arkansas Teacher Corps, a non-profit arm of the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.

As APCF’s Executive Director, Chris has the experience and perspective to guide the organization as it continues to expand its depth and breadth across the state of Arkansas.  He provides daily leadership for his staff and drives relationship building statewide and beyond with patients, supporters, and stakeholders. A frequent speaker and presenter, he leads various organizational and educational outreach activities. In addition, he oversees strategic planning initiatives in support of the continued growth and development of the foundation. Under his leadership, the APCF has expanded their services and reach to previously unserved areas of Arkansas, developed strategic partnerships with a large number of entities heretofore untapped, implemented new patient and donor databases for the first time in the foundation’s 20 year history, and installed streamlined technology capabilities to provide greater efficiencies.  Chris was recently re-elected to the Arkansas Cancer Coalition’s (ACC) state board of directors and is a member of the National Alliance of State Prostate Cancer Coalitions (NASPCC), Board of Directors, having begun his term in 2023.

A native Arkansan raised in Hot Springs; Chris earned his Bachelor of Arts in political science from Hendrix College in Conway.

Chris has two sons and two grandsons. He and his wife, Brenda, live in Conway, Arkansas.

Megan Bellfield
Outreach and Programs Coordinator

Megan Bellfield

Outreach and Programs Coordinator

Megan Bellfield joined the Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation in 2023 as the Outreach and Programs Coordinator. In 2018, she interned for Atlanta Mission, the largest homeless shelter in the city of Atlanta, Georgia. In 2020 she participated in AmeriCorps and served as a VISTA to Be Mighty Little Rock, an anti-hunger campaign. After her service year ended, she joined the Arkansas Foodbank. She graduated from Hendrix College in 2020 with a major in History and a Minor in Spanish

Mariela Lopez
Executive Administrator

Mariela Lopez

Executive Administrator

Mariela joined our team in August 2023 as Executive Assistant. Mariela has a varied background in customer service and collaborate with her team. She is looking forward to helping her team to bring out the best in their patients. She approaches all aspects of any job with a positive, hard-working mindset, and is passionate about helping find solutions to any challenges. She can’t wait to bring the better and see what the future holds for our foundation.

Board of Directors

Members of the Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation’s Board of Directors are community leaders who commit their leadership in 3-year terms. For information about becoming a member of the board of directors, please e-mail the Foundation, or call (501) 379-8027.

Don Fowler
Chair

Susan Richards, CPA
Treasurer

Nirmal Kilambi, MD
Member at Large

Joe Lee Buford, MD

Michelle Whitlock Cadle

Natalie Ghidotti

Paul Holmes

Dwight Moore

Rodney Staggs

Tricia Curreri

Nanci Armstrong

John Wiley

Julie Wiedower Kaylor

Matt Olson

Vision

No Arkansan should face prostate cancer alone.

History

Recognizing the need for prostate cancer control in Arkansas, six community leaders, who are all prostate cancer survivors, and a Medical Advisory Committee of physicians from around the state formed the Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation (APCF) in 2000. The Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, public charity, has a mission to promote awareness, encourage timely detection and support improved treatment of prostate cancer in Arkansas.

Believing that all men in the state, regardless of disparities in cultural competence, financial resources or proximity to care should have access to information, diagnosis and treatment, APCF implemented its education and screening program in 2001, a model that has increased participation ever since by working with healthcare providers and community partners who are vested in men’s health. In 2006, the first regional prostate cancer support group located in Little Rock was added to the program model.

Three years later, three additional regional support groups located in Fayetteville, Ft. Smith and Jonesboro were also added. All of these groups, now known collectively as the Peer Network, provide confidential environments for diagnosed men to share about their experiences with prostate cancer. The Peer Network is ongoing with plans to grow into other areas in the future. Finally, the program model was expanded to include a Patient Navigation program and a Survivor Mentor program.

The Navigation program provides a trained professional navigator to guide individual men with suspicious prostate findings through the cancer care system from diagnosis to treatment and recovery, making sure that each man gets the resources and support he needs. The Survivor Mentor program connects newly diagnosed men one-on-one with a survivor who provides information and support.

The Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation is a proud participant in the National Alliance of State Prostate Cancer Coalitions.

Sponsors

The Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation’s Corporate Partners commit $20,000 or more annually in funding and donated goods and services. To learn more about becoming a corporate partner, please contact the Foundation office by phone (501) 379-8027 or at info@arprostatecancer.org.

Baptist Health

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Lamar Outdoor Advertising

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First Horizon

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Medical Advisory Board

The Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation’s Medical Advisory Committee includes urologists, radiation oncologists, an internist and a rehabilitation specialist and provides technical support to the Foundation.

For more information about the committee or its guidance, please e-mail the Foundation or call (501)379-8027.

Kyle Basham, MD
Urologist

Anthony Bucolo, MD
Medical Oncologist

M. Adam Childs, MD
Urologist

Rodney Davis, MD
Urologist

Alan Diekman, PhD
Andrologist

Robert T. Emery, MD
Urologist

Xiang Gao, MD
Radiation Oncologist

Timothy C. Goodson, MD
Urologist

David Jacks, MD
Urologist

Manuel Kelley, MD
Urologist

Nirmal Kilambi, MD

Jason Lofton, MD
Family Practice

Jeffery Marotte, MD
Urologist Chairman

Ladd Scriber, MD
Urologist

No Shave Club 2023

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Now Extended to December 15th!

All funds raised will directly benefit APCF’s initiatives, including free awareness and educational programs, prostate cancer screenings, and patient assistance. Every dollar raised will stay in Arkansas, making a lasting impact on the local community.

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