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Azalea. An oncology knowledge system aimed at patients and the public. Proceedings of the conference held 16 June 2005 at the Regina Elena Cancer Institute, Rome, on the inauguration of the Digital Library – Knowledge Centre “R Maceratini” and the Patient Library. The conference was dedicated to the Azalea Digital Library, accessible via www.azaleaweb.it, which was created as the result of the multicentric collaboration between the seven approved “Scientific Institutes of Hospital Admission and Treatment” (IRCCS) specialising in oncology and under the umbrella of the Alliance Against Cancer, i.e. the Italian “comprehensive cancer centres”. Azalea offers quality controlled information integrated in various formats, such as leaflets, electronic resources, clinical trials, and associations, thereby ensuring that patients are presented with a complete range of cancer information sources. Presentations by doctors, psychologists, librarians and informatics specialists deal with various areas, including information for patients within the ambit of Evidence-Based Medicine, aspects regarding the dissemination of clinical trials information, the initiatives of associations and institutions in the development of leaflets and web resources, and the creation of patient libraries and patient information points. The opening session focused on the organisation and development issues regarding knowledge centres in healthcare. At the international level the Catalogue et Index des Sites Médicaux Francophones (CISMeF) was examined. The study day was aimed at presenting an overall panorama of the state of the art in Italy on health information initiatives for patients and the public.