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Grant helps Cancer Center patients with transportation costs

Grant helps Cancer Center patients with transportation costs

American Cancer Society grant awards generous grant to Cancer Center

Cancer patients undergoing treatment frequently require assistance getting to and from facilities, often creating a financial and logistical burden. This adds stress and can lead to missed appointments, which can negatively affect a patient’s recovery.

To help ease that burden, the American Cancer Society has awarded a $3,000 grant to Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County’s Sweetwater Regional Cancer Center to address the transportation needs of cancer patients in Sweetwater County. These grants are available to health systems, treatment centers and community organizations in select communities through an application process, and they focus on addressing unmet transportation needs of cancer patients, particularly vulnerable populations experiencing an unequal burden of cancer.

“We are very grateful to the American Cancer Society for their generous support of our patients,” said Tasha Harris, Director of Sweetwater Regional Cancer Center. “We have many patients who travel here for treatment, sometimes hundreds of miles each day. Being able to provide gas cards or help pay for rides to offset their travel costs is extremely helpful to our patients. They are so appreciative.

“Thanks to the American Cancer Society, we will be able to relieve more of the financial burden that comes with getting to and from treatments,” Harris said. “It could mean the difference between a patient getting to all of their treatments or not. It means so much to our patients and to us.”

Angie Rolle, Vice President, Regional Cancer Control, said “Disparities predominantly arise from inequities in work, wealth, income, education, housing and overall standard of living, as well as social barriers to high-quality cancer prevention, early detection and treatment services. Transportation programs are vital to help patients get the treatments they need and deserve.”

An estimated 2,600 Wyoming residents will learn they have cancer this year and getting to their scheduled treatment may be one of their greatest roadblocks. To help patients get the care they need, American Cancer Society community transportation grants are awarded at a local level to health systems, treatment centers and community organizations. These grants are available in select communities through an application process and focus on addressing unmet transportation needs of cancer patients, particularly vulnerable populations experiencing an unequal burden of cancer.

Transportation assistance is available in many forms from Sweetwater Regional Cancer Center, Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County and the Memorial Hospital Foundation.

The wide range of help available includes money for gas, rides to and from appointments, and the Waldner House, which can provide a home away from home for those who don’t wish to travel long distances daily. Long-distance transportation assistance for appointments also may be available if necessary.

Ensuring patient access to treatments at Sweetwater Regional Cancer Center and its affiliates is a priority. For details, call 307-212-7565.

For more information about the American Cancer Society, call 800-227-2345 or visit cancer.org.

For more on this and all Sweetwater Memorial has to offer, go to sweetwatermemorial.com.