Public advocacy, especially healthcare advocacy, has deep roots and history in the United States. The AIDS Movement, breast cancer, and pancreatic cancer offer three strong examples of the power those movements brought to advancing research, improving clinical outcomes, strengthening patient education and support by galvanizing a community into action. A key thread to the success of these movements was "leadership" in the context of organization leaders able to translate vision and need into action and results. Effective leadership inspires motivation, passion, and energy into courage, hope, and progress.
Global awareness around advocacy and the importance of the public voice with policy makers continues to expand.