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TEST BEFORE TREATMENTSponsor the campaign

FAST / Test Before Treatment

TEST BEFORE TREATMENT

A campaign of the FAST Initiative, September 2026 to March 2027

Test before treatment.

Every patient with cancer should start treatment informed by their biomarker results, because the appropriate testing happened in time. Biomarker testing can point to a targeted therapy, immunotherapy or clinical trial, but only if results arrive before treatment starts. Test Before Treatment is a campaign to make that the standard of care, from September through Biomarker Testing Awareness Month in March.

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When
September 2026 to March 2027
Focus
Treatment informed by biomarker results, through appropriate testing in time
Initiative
FAST
Sponsorship
Open now

Covered isn't the same as tested.

Twenty-five states now require health plans to cover biomarker testing. Coverage opens the door, but it doesn't walk patients through it. The biggest gap in care now sits between coverage and use: tests that aren't ordered, results that arrive after treatment starts, and results that never reach a treatment decision.

Of every 100 patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer who could benefit from precision medicine, about 36 receive the matched treatment.3 Each step is a handoff, and each handoff can be fixed.

25

states have passed biomarker testing coverage laws.1

39.5%

of patients with advanced lung cancer in community practices were tested for all recommended biomarkers.2

28%

lacked results in time to guide their first treatment.2

22%

of recently diagnosed patients with ER+, HER2- metastatic breast cancer were tested for ESR1 during first-line treatment, a marker that can change the treatment plan.4

Each month takes on one part of that gap, from breast and lung cancer to the coverage changes on January 1, and builds to Biomarker Testing Awareness Month in March.

See the states with coverage laws

1. American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, updated September 8, 2026; some laws apply to public or private plans only. 2. Thomas CA et al., JCO Oncology Practice, 2026; 306 patients with advanced NSCLC in 30 community practices, 13 recommended biomarkers. 3. Sadik H et al., JCO Precision Oncology, 2022. 4. Meisel J, Pham T, Chen C, Kris A, Roose J. Breast Cancer Res Treat, 2026; Flatiron Health Research Database, 7,772 patients with ER+, HER2- metastatic breast cancer starting first-line therapy.

Four audiences, one gap.

Closing the gap takes everyone between a covered test and a treatment decision. Each audience has its own plain-language page, materials and messages on the Biomarker Testing Awareness Month site.

Patients & Families

Ask about testing before treatment starts.

Open the Patients and Families page

Oncology Care Teams

Appropriate testing, ordered every time, so treatment starts right.

Open the Oncology Care Teams page

Health Systems & Labs

Close the gap from order to result.

Open the Health Systems and Labs page

Employers & Policymakers

For employers and lawmakers: coverage is the start, not the finish line.

Open the Employers and Policymakers page

September to March.

Six months of events and resources, from testing to treatment: breast, lung and colorectal cancer, the coverage story, and Biomarker Testing Awareness Month.

We'll email you as new events are announced. See our Privacy Policy.

  1. SEPT30
    Kickoff · Field Notes

    Field Notes: Employers & Cancer Care

    Employers are rethinking cancer benefits. Testing belongs in that conversation. From MACC.

    Read the field notesDownload PDF
  2. OCT2026
    Breast Cancer Awareness Month

    Breast cancer: test at diagnosis, and again at progression

    ESR1, PIK3CA, HER2-low and BRCA. One test isn't always enough: retest when the cancer changes.

    Coming soon
  3. NOV2026
    Lung Cancer Awareness Month

    Lung cancer: the full panel, before treatment

    EGFR, ALK, KRAS and every guideline-recommended marker, ordered at once, with results back before treatment starts. Plus the November 19 webinar, From Coverage to Care: A Tennessee Spotlight, with Gregory Vidal, MD, PhD.

    Event detailsRegister on Zoom
  4. DEC2026
    Coverage prep

    Before January 1

    New plan years and new state coverage laws start January 1. What patients, practices and employers should check now.

    Coming soon
  5. JAN2027
    Coverage changes · Report

    January 1 Isn't the Finish Line

    Coverage opens the door. What it doesn't fix: ordering, turnaround, prior authorization and self-funded plans.

    Coming soon
  6. FEB2027
    Testing 101

    Comprehensive genomic testing, explained

    Tissue or blood, panel or single marker, and what results mean for treatment options. Plus the media push and partner toolkit ahead of March.

    Coming soon
  7. MAR2027
    Awareness month · Colorectal cancer

    Biomarker Testing Awareness Month

    The national capstone, with colorectal cancer as the deep dive: MSI/MMR, KRAS, NRAS, BRAF and HER2. Plain-language pages for every audience, materials and a partner wall.

    Visit biomarkertestingawarenessmonth.org

Who's involved.

Convened by AHIS, with sponsors and partners named publicly.

Featured speakers

Gregory Vidal, MD, PhD
Gregory Vidal, MD, PhDWest Cancer Center. Speaking at the November 19 webinar.

Contributors

MACC, Memphis Area Cancer Consortium
MACCMemphis Area Cancer Consortium, a campaign of the AHIS Memphis Mid-South chapter. Author of the September Field Notes and supporter of the November 19 webinar.
Sponsors

Sponsors are listed here by level once agreements are signed. Sign by November 5 to be acknowledged at the November 19 webinar.

Become a sponsor

Impact Partners

Advocacy groups, clinics and community organizations are listed here and on the partner wall as they join.

Join free as an Impact Partner

Speakers are listed on each event page. AHIS selects all speakers and content, and featured clinicians and speakers disclose relevant relationships.

Choose the role you want to play.

Levels are defined by role, not just amount. Every level is recognition only: no sponsor or partner reviews, approves or shapes campaign content.

Presenting

Presenting sponsor. Limited to two.

$75,000

  • “Supported by” credit on Biomarker Testing Awareness Month, March 2027
  • First placement on the partner wall and this page
  • Named in campaign announcements and the recap
  • Acknowledged at each campaign event
  • Early access to campaign materials and aggregate results
  • Recap by April 30, 2027, plus a results briefing with the AHIS team

Cash sponsorship, with first option to renew. Offered only in this inaugural campaign.

Talk to us about Presenting

Visionary

Leads the campaign.

$40,000

  • Top placement on the partner wall and this page, after Presenting sponsors
  • Named in campaign announcements and the recap
  • Acknowledged at each campaign event
  • Early access to campaign materials and aggregate results
  • Recap by April 30, 2027, plus a briefing with the AHIS team

Cash sponsorship, with first option to renew

Talk to us about Visionary

Growth

Extends the campaign's reach.

$15,000

  • Logo in the Growth row of the partner wall and this page
  • Recognition in campaign materials
  • Report on the reach you drove
  • Recap by April 30, 2027

Cash sponsorship, or reach through your patient portals, newsletters or media

Talk to us about Growth

Impact

Delivers the campaign in communities.

Free

  • Logo in the Impact row of the partner wall
  • Partner spotlight post
  • The full campaign toolkit
  • Recap by April 30, 2027

For advocacy groups, clinics, FQHCs, societies and community organizations

Join as an Impact Partner
Sign by November 5

to be acknowledged at the November 19 webinar. Sponsors who join later are recognized from the next event on, at the same level and price.

Recognition

Sponsors are named publicly by level on this page and the Biomarker Testing Awareness Month partner wall. No sponsor reviews or shapes campaign content.

Sponsorship covers the full campaign, from signing through March 31, 2027, with recognition through September 30, 2027. No level carries category or product exclusivity. Presenting is limited to two sponsors. Full benefits and principal terms are in the Sponsor Toolkit.

Built to pass your compliance review.

Test Before Treatment is a disease-awareness campaign. Its value to every sponsor depends on its independence, so independence is built in, not negotiated. How AHIS stays independent

Non-promotional

Campaign content is about biomarker testing: who should ask, when and how to get it. AHIS does not endorse therapies, tests, products or providers.

Guidelines are the source

Recommendations follow current national clinical guidelines and public health sources, with every statistic cited.

AHIS selects all speakers and content

Sponsors do not review, edit or approve patient-facing materials, speakers or agendas. Featured clinicians and speakers disclose relevant relationships.

No exclusivity

Multiple sponsors at every level, including companies whose products or tests compete. No sponsor owns the campaign or the month.

Advisory only

Sponsors may share priorities through the Sponsor Advisory Council, a formal, non-binding channel with published summaries. They never direct content or conclusions.

Named publicly

All sponsors are listed by level. Participation by sponsors, members or partners does not imply AHIS endorsement or preferential treatment.

For your internal routing. This is a disease-awareness sponsorship with recognition benefits, typically funded from patient advocacy, public affairs, market access or disease-state budgets. It is not a charitable contribution without benefits, and not an independent medical education grant.

Free to join. A small ask. Real reach.

Advocacy groups, clinics, FQHCs, societies and community organizations carry the message into their communities.

What we ask

  • Share the campaign at least once, ideally in March: a post, a newsletter item or a note to members.
  • Use the campaign mark. The logo pack is ready now; social graphics arrive in February.
  • Optional: tell us about an event or activity, or connect us with a story we could share, with permission.

What you get

  • Your logo on the partner wall at biomarkertestingawarenessmonth.org, linked to your site.
  • A partner spotlight on campaign channels.
  • The full campaign toolkit: messages, graphics and plain-language pages for every audience.
  • The campaign recap in April, to show your members and funders.
Join the partner wallImpact Partner Toolkit (PDF)Logo pack (ZIP)

Follow the campaign.

Use both hashtags and link back to the campaign so people get current information.

Campaign home

This page: all events, speakers and registration.

March site

biomarkertestingawarenessmonth.org, with pages for each audience, materials and the partner wall.

Hashtags

#TestBeforeTreatment through the campaign, and #BiomarkerTestingAwarenessMonth in March.