Press Releases

ATLANTA – March 18, 2022 – The American Cancer Society honors one outstanding individual with the 2021 Lane Adams Quality of Life Award, a national honor for leadership in serving the complex needs of cancer patients and their families.  The 2021 recipient is Abdul Saied Calvino, MD from Providence, Rhode Island.

The Lane W. Adams Quality of Life Award recognizes individuals who consistently exhibit excellence and compassion in providing care to cancer patients, going beyond their professional roles to make a difference in the life of cancer patients and their families. This award also represents the concept of the “warm hand of service,” which is an integral part of the Society’s commitment to excellence in cancer care and specifically emphasized by Lane W. Adams when he served as executive vice president of the American Cancer Society. Lane’s definition of the warm hand of service was to “serve others and enrich the purpose of one’s existence.”

Abdul Saied Calvino, MD is a steadfast advocate for the underserved populations throughout Rhode Island. In 2016, Dr. Calvino and his colleagues at Roger Williams Medical Center launched a community outreach and navigation program for Hispanics in Rhode Island. The goals were to increase colorectal cancer screening rates, decrease incidence, and increase early diagnosis. Over a 19-month period, 398 patients were enrolled in the program with a colonoscopy completion rate of 93%. In post-colonoscopy surveys,76% said that they would not have completed the procedure without this program. Dr. Calvino and his team have also worked to educate underserved communities about colorectal cancer treatment and prevention and have held more than 20 outreach events in conjunction with community organization to target the Hispanic, Southeast Asian, and Native American communities across the state. His commitment to cancer patients and their families extends to his support and collaboration with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). He worked closely with ACS CAN in Rhode Island for a passage of a bill that removed a financial barrier to colorectal cancer screening. In large part due to Dr. Calvino’s dedication, insight, and advocacy, the bill was ultimately signed into law in 2021. In addition to being a practicing surgical oncologist at Roger Williams Medical Center, Dr. Calvino is also an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and serves as the Associate Director for the Surgery Clerkship at BUSM.

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