COLONTOWN Community

Find support from fellow colorectal cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers in COLONTOWN, an online community of more than 100 “secret” support groups. Join the groups that are right for your colon or rectal cancer diagnosis — and connect with others who understand what you are going through.

Here, you’ll find groups based on:

Cancer Stage and Location: Whether you are diagnosed at Stage I, Stage II, Stage III, or Stage IV, designated groups make connecting on specific topics easier. Plus, groups based on the location of your rectal or colon tumor and the location of any metastases make it simple to find information on treatment options.
Age, Gender, and Life Stages: COLONTOWN has groups for young-onset colorectal cancer patients, women, men, LGBTQ, parents, military, and more. Connect with others who are living through similar situations.
Side Effects: Learn to manage your treatment side effects from chemo, radiation, and surgery, such as in the “Live Wire” group that discusses how to prevent and treat neuropathy from oxaliplatin treatments like FOLFOX and CAPOX.
Local Support: Join one of the more than 30 U.S. regional groups and 6 international groups to talk with others in your area. Discuss treatment options in your area — or meet up with a new friend for in-person support.
Clinical Trials: Get help learning about and navigating the clinical trial process in our nine different clinical trial groups. Trained patient navigators post information about the latest trials and answer your questions, while members share their experiences and results on trials.
Caregivers: Certain COLONTOWN groups are designated as “caregiver-only” and “patient-only,” providing everyone with the space to openly share and find the support they need. Whether you are a primary caregiver, a parent, or a secondary caregiver, you’ll find a group for you.
And so much more!

List of Online Groups

COLONTOWN - General

Home group for all COLONTOWN citizens

COLONTOWN DOWNTOWN – (For all COLONTOWN citizens)

Patient Plaza

Neighborhoods for stages/phases of disease and ages of patients, open to patients only.

Stage or phase of cancer:

1ST AVENUE (Stage I patients)
2ND AVENUE (Stage II patients)
3RD LANE (Stage III patients)
FOUR CORNERS (Stage IV patients)
NED’S BALLROOM (Patients with current or previous NED — no evidence of disease — status)

Age/Gender

MIDDLEBURY MANOR (Patients 50 years or older)
POKER CLUB (Patients who identify as men)
TOUGH CHICKS (Patients who identify as women)
YOUNGSTOWN (Early-onset patients)

Treatment Township

Neighborhoods for side effect and treatment management, as well as specific systemic treatments. Open to patients and carepartners.

GI treatment and management

GASTRO GARDENS (Gut microbiome and gastrointestinal tract health including symptom management)
LARS JUNCTION (Diagnosis of lower anterior resection syndrome)
REVERSAL ROUNDABOUT (Ostomy reversal)
STOMA CITY (All things ostomy)

All side effects and pain management

LIVE WIRE (neuropathy from chemo)
PALLIATIVE PANTRY (Managing side effects from day one)
SAFE HAVEN (Patients with both a mental health and CRC diagnosis)

Specific systemic treatments

HOSPICE HARBOR (Understanding and support for hospice care)
IMMUNOASIS (Immunotherapy and checkpoint inhibitors)
LONGHAULER HOLLOW (For third-line treatments, Lonsurf, Stivarga and Fruquintinib chemotherapy, including combos like REGONIVO)

Carepartner Cove

Neighborhoods for carepartners only

Caregiving

CAREPARTNER CORNER (Primary carepartners of CRC patients, all stages)
FAMILY CIRCLE (Secondary carepartners, friends and relatives)
NED’S DANCE PARTNERS (Primary carepartners of NED patients)
STAGE IV CAREPARTNER CORNER (Primary carepartners of stage IV patients)
COLONTOWN JUNIOR (Neighborhoods for families of pediatric CRC patients under the age of 21)

Loss and grief

BEYOND THE THRESHOLD (Life after loss)
PARENT LOSS CONNECTION (Adult children who have lost a parent to CRC)

Uniqueness Union

Neighborhoods that address the far-reaching impacts from cancer, as well as more ways to “find your people” — those with common interests, identities and mindsets. Open to patients and carepartners.

Interest groups

BOOK NOOK (Reading group)
ARTS 4 HEALING (Artistic and craft-related hobbies)
HEALTHY HABITS HIGHWAY (Nutrition and fitness)
MERLIN’S MAJIC & LAFFS (Just for laughs — jokes, memes, silly stories, pet brags)
SKEPTICS’ OVERPASS (For those with skeptical views regarding religion and politics. Exempt from COLONTOWN guidelines regarding these topics)

Practical matter groups

BILLING OFFICE (Billing, insurance, social security and disability)
PLANNING PLAZA (Future planning, including finances, end of life, and legacy)

Kinship groups

MILITARY SERVICE ACTION (Active military, veterans and families)
PRIDEVILLE (LGBTQ+)
PTA — PARENT TALKING ASSOCIATION (Parents or guardians of children under 18, with a parent with CRC)
SINGLETONS (Single CRC patients)

Spiritual and/or religion based groups. These groups are exempt from COLONTOWN religion guidelines. Open to patients and carepartners.

Spiritual groups

KIBBUTZ(For Jewish faith discussion and prayers)
CRESCENT & STAR CENTER (For Islamic faith discussion and prayers)
PRAYER PLACE (For religious prayers and support)
ZEN DEN (For exploration of meditation, yoga, qi gong, reiki and other practices based in spirituality/religion)
STONE CIRCLE (For Pagan religions)

Crews — USA

Geographic neighborhoods based on home and/or treatment locations. Open to patients and carepartners.

Midwest groups

GREAT LAKES MICHIGAN CREW (Michigan)
INDY CREW (Indianapolis)
MIDDLE OF THE MAP (Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska, Downstate Illinois, Missouri)
ROCK N ROLL (Ohio, and West Virginia)
NORTHERN LIGHTS (Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin, Mayo Rochester, Northern Lights)
WINDY CITY (Greater Chicagoland Area)

Northeast/Midatlantic groups

CAPITAL CITY (DC and the surrounding areas in Maryland and Virginia)
NEW ENGLAND COLON WARRIORS (Boston, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, Rhode Island)
EMPIRE CONSTITUTION STATE (New York, Connecticut)
EAST COAST ENSEMBLE (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware)

Southern groups

PEACH STATE POSSE (Georgia)
THE BAYOU COALITION (Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Gulf Coast)
SOUTHERN FRONTIER (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas)
TAR HEELS (North Carolina)
PALMETTO (South Carolina)
SALTY VIRGINIA (Virginia, outside of the beltway)
SUNSHINE STATE (Florida)
CUMBERLAND GAP (Tennessee and Kentucky)

Western groups

NORCAL (Northern California, Reno Nevada)
GRAND CANYON (Arizona, non-metro Nevada, New Mexico)
SOCAL (Southern California, Las Vegas)
5820 MILE HIGH (Denver area/Colorado)
SNOW COUNTRY (Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana)
PACIFIC NW (Pacific North West, Washington, Oregon, and Alaska West of Cascades)

Crews — International

Geographic neighborhoods based on home and/or treatment locations. Open to patients and carepartners.

ACROSS THE POND (For European members to connect about treatment)
DOWNTOWN ALLEY (UK, English)
LEKKA SAFFAS (South Africa, English)
DOWN UNDER (Australia and New Zeland, English)
TRUE NORTH CREW (Canada, English)

Locations and Types Station

Neighborhoods that focus on the specific biology of your cancer. Open to patients and carepartners.

Primary tumor location & subtypes

ON THE RIGHT SIDE (Cancer in the cecum, ascending or transverse colon)
RECTALBURGH (Rectal cancer)
UNCOMMON CUL-DE-SAC (Mucinous & signet ring cell cancer, cancer of appendix, cancer of the neuroendocrine system, small bowel intestine primary)
ANALWISE (Anal cancer including anal cancer clinical trials)
FAP FAMILY (Familial Adenomatous Polyposis – patients and family)
LYNCHVILLE (Lynch Syndrome for CA survivors and pre-vivors)
HONOR THY APPENDIX (Appendix primary)

Mets Stadium

Metastases and local treatments for metastases. Open to patients and carepartners.

Liver mets and local liver mets treatment groups

LIVER LOVERS LANE (Liver mets)
HAI PUMP PEOPLE (HAI treatment for liver mets)
MIGHTY Y-90 (Y-90 treatment for liver mets)
TRANSPLANTATION STATION (Live donor liver transplants)

Other mets and local mets treatment groups

THE ATTIC (Brain mets)
LEGOSLAND (Bone mets)
LUNGSTON (Lung mets)
IN THE DISTANCE (Distant lymph node mets, not for local lymph node mets)
PERI PLACE & HIPEC HEIGHTS (Peritoneal mets, including HIPEC treatment)

Tom's Science & Trials School

Education and discussion of CRC science and clinical trials. Open to patients and carepartners.

Science Classroom

CRC101 – (Go to COLONTOWN University: www.learn.colontown.org for scientific fundamentals of colorectal disease)

Trials classrooms

TRIALS LEARNING LAB (Introduction to the structure, process and finding of clinical trials)
TOM’S MSI-H CLINIC (MSI-H clinical trials and other treatments)
TOM’S MSS CLINICAL TRIALS (MSS clinical trials)
TOM’S CELL THERAPY TRIALS (CAR-T, TIL, NK Cell Therapy and NIH TIL Trial)

Mutations classrooms

TOM & CON’S BRAF+ CLINIC (BRAF mutations)
TOM’S RAS CLINIC(KRAS/NRAS/HRAS mutations)
TOM’S HER2 CLINIC (HER2 mutations)
TOM’S INHERITED MUTATION CLINIC (CHEK2, BRCA and other inherited mutations)
COLONTOWN HOSTS AND VOLUNTEERS (The group for people who make COLONTOWN work)