A Bold New Direction: ZERO Prostate Cancer Unveils New Mission, Vision, and Values

May 13, 2025

As we began a new fiscal year, I'm excited to share a transformative milestone in ZERO Prostate Cancer's journey. After nearly a year of thoughtful collaboration and community engagement, I’m so proud to share our new Mission, Vision, and organizational Values–the guiding lights for our work in the fight against prostate cancer.

When I stepped into the role of CEO in 2023, I shared my commitment to transforming ZERO into an organization that could meet the evolving needs of our community with greater impact. In previous blog posts, I've chronicled how we’ve grown through challenges. That’s why I’m also thrilled to announce that we’ve reached a new defining moment in that transformation. A moment that represents more than just statements on paper—it’s about our renewed identity shaped by the voices and the needs of the people we are privileged to serve.

Our New North Star

Our Mission: To improve and save lives from prostate cancer through advocacy, education, awareness, and support.

This mission embodies the essence of our work. It is at the heart of what we do every day. It centers on our cause: the lives we touch and those we strive to save. It highlights our actions: advocacy, education, awareness, and support. And it affirms our impact: improving, changing and saving lives from prostate cancer.

You might notice one word missing: research. That’s intentional. ZERO was founded on a commitment to advocate for increased public funding for prostate cancer research–and that remains central to who we are. But advocacy, as we define it now, is broader and more powerful. What I like to call, “Big A” Advocacy is much more expansive.

Our Vision: A future where prostate cancer detection is early, support is unwavering, and care is accessible to all.

ZERO’s vision is what I reference most when I’m speaking to our patients, partners, and the public. It boldly articulates the world we're working to create–one where no one faces prostate cancer alone or without the resources they need. A world where people live longer and better lives. A world without barriers and a world where quality care is equitable and available to all.

You might also notice something else: we don’t say “a world without prostate cancer.” That decision sparked deep conversation. Some felt strongly about including it; others challenged us to be honest about what ZERO is uniquely positioned to achieve.

In the end, we chose a vision rooted in the change we know we can achieve–delivering meaningful impact for patients, survivors and their loved ones, today and tomorrow.

The Values That Guide Us

For the first time in our history, ZERO now has core values that extend beyond internal operations to reflect our broader commitments to the entire prostate cancer community:

Ambition: When it comes to prostate cancer, we demand excellence. That’s why our work must be bold, courageous, urgent, and transformative. We challenge ourselves daily to find smarter, better and more innovative ways to improve and save lives from prostate cancer.

Courage: We refuse to accept the status quo. We value the courage it takes to make hard decisions, and to give and receive honest feedback in service of growth. We value the courage it takes to stand up against inequities when others won't. We are willing to do what it takes, in service of our mission to advance transformative progress.

Empathy: No one should ever face prostate cancer alone or without the information and community they need to make the best choices about their health. We center the experiences of patients, caregivers, and loved ones in everything we do as we work to build and strengthen understanding and empathy across our community.

Inclusion: Prostate cancer impacts everyone. Because of that we welcome and represent all people affected by prostate cancer. Whether patients, survivors, caregivers, partners and allies alike.

Integrity: We are honest and ethical partners, driven by a shared commitment to improve and save lives from prostate cancer. In service of this mission and in all that we do, we are truthful, fair, and sincere.

A Community-Driven Process

These value statements weren't created in a vacuum. They represent the culmination of an intensive community-informed listening process that brought together voices from across our ecosystem:

ZERO leaders and board members collaborated in focused strategy sessions throughout 2024.
Over 40 ZERO team members participated in multiple listening sessions with additional staff attending many open office hours.
Volunteers and ZERO champions provided invaluable perspective and insights in focus groups.

We also got feedback from our external partners that was particularly illuminating. They emphasized the need for ZERO to better define what our name truly means through our messaging, while balancing boldness with practicality, emotion with impact. This insight directly shaped our approach to these new guiding principles.

Why These Values Matter Now More Than Ever

In today's complex healthcare and nonprofit landscape, our values of inclusivity, ambition, and courage are more important than ever. As prostate cancer cases continue to rise and disparities in care persist, our core values are not just aspirational–they are essential:

Inclusion ensures we're reaching all communities affected by prostate cancer, especially those historically underserved.
Ambition drives us to reject complacency and strive for more innovative breakthroughs and solutions.
Courage empowers us to stand firm in our mission, even when the path is difficult.

As noted in our alignment sessions, there's a desire to better define what "ZERO" truly means for our organization through our messaging. These values now serve as our compass–helping us strike the critical balance between being bold yet practical, emotional yet impactful.

Looking Forward: New Year, New ZERO

Our new mission, vision, and values statements mark a pivotal moment in our transformation journey. They aren't just the culmination of months of thoughtful work—they're the launchpad for our future, and will guide and inform our strategic planning process beginning in early 2025.

In the coming months, you'll see a bolder approach from ZERO as we put these principles into action. We've learned that transformation isn't just about changing what we say—it's about changing how we work, who we reach, and how deeply we make an impact.

Which all culminates in our new tagline:

ZERO Stigma. ZERO Barriers.

I invite you—whether you're a patient, survivor, caregiver, healthcare provider, researcher, donor, or advocate—to join us in this next chapter. Together, guided by these principles, we can shape a future where prostate cancer no longer threatens the lives and wellbeing of those we love. I'd love to hear how these values resonate with your experience and hopes for the future of prostate cancer care. Please, check out our new page on the ZERO website that highlights our new era.