Helpful Cancer Organizations

Navigating life after a cancer diagnosis for both the patient and caregiver(s) can be complex. Below are some organizations that may be helpful, whether you need support for yourself, a loved one, or just wish to volunteer your time or money to help others. Many organizations have been suggested by The Patient Story community members.

General Cancer Organizations (All Cancer Types)

Variety of Services

American Cancer Society

• What they do: Funding and conducting research, sharing expert information, supporting patients, and spreading the word about prevention.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Housing Assistance | Education | Transportation Assistance | Guidance

American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO)

• What they do: Provide education and resources about radiation therapy to medical professionals, patients, policy leaders, and the public.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education materials | Radiation Oncologist directory | Survivorship resources

Patient Empowerment Network

• What they do: Provide free health literacy resources for various cancers to help patients and care partners.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Patient Toolkits | Education

Livestrong

• What they do: Online resources available to help you at any point on your cancer journey.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Fertility Assistance

There are organizations out there that help cancer patients with the monetary aspect of [IVF] because it isn’t covered by insurance and it’s really expensive…Livestrong has a really great program where they help cancer patients going through IVF.

Mila Lazarevsky, cervical cancer survivor

Financial Assistance

Cancer Financial Assistance Coalition (CFAC)

• What they do: Helping cancer patients manage their financial challenges
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Financial Assistance

Cancer Wellness Center

• What they do: Provide education, wellness services and psychosocial support to those impacted by cancer and their loved ones.
• Location: Chicago suburbs
• Patient services offered: Education | Counseling | Support Groups

Family Reach

• What they do: Remove financial barriers standing between a cancer patient and their treatment.
• Location: Headquartered in Boston, MA but with a nationwide reach
• Patient services offered: Financial Education | Financial Planning with Pro Bono Certified Financial Advisor | Emergency Relief Funds

HealthWell Foundation

• What they do: Dedicated to improving access to care for America’s underinsured.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Financial Assistance

Partnership for Prescription Assistance

• What they do: Help in finding the prescription program that’s right – free of charge.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Financial Assistance

Patient Access Network Foundation

• What they do: help underinsured people with life-threatening, chronic and rare diseases get the medications and treatment they need by paying for their out-of-pocket costs and advocating for improved access and affordability.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Financial Assistance

Patient Services Incorporated

• What they do: Provide financial support and guidance for qualified patients with specific, rare chronic diseases.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Financial Assistance

Transportation Assistance

Angel Airline Samaritans

• What they do: Facilitates no-cost or reduced rate commercial airline tickets for needy cancer patients and their families.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Transportation Assistance

Angel Flight East (AFE)

• What they do: Facilitates free air transportation to children and adults in need of medical treatment far from home and other compelling needs.
• Location: Virginia to Ohio to Maine
• Patient services offered: Transportation Assistance

Corporate Angel Network

• What they do: Transport cancer patients to the hospital [for] specialized form of treatment by pairing empty seats with qualified patients who need the rides at no cost.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Transportation Assistance

Mercy Medical Angels

• What they do: Provides free transportation nationwide to and from medical care on the ground with gas cards, bus and train tickets and in the air through commercial airlines and volunteer pilots.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Transportation Assistance

Patient Airlift Services

• What they do: Arrange free air transportation for individuals requiring medical diagnosis, treatment or follow-up.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Transportation Assistance

Housing Assistance

Healthcare Hospitality Network

• What they do: Nearly 200 non-profit organizations throughout the U.S. that offer free or low-cost family-centered lodging to families getting medical treatment away from home.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Housing Assistance

Joe’s House

• What they do: Help cancer patients and their families find a place to stay when traveling away from home for medical treatment.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Housing Assistance

Peer-to-Peer Support

Imerman Angels

• What they do: Provide free peer-to-peer support (“Angels”) “to provide comfort and understanding for all cancer fighters, survivors, previvors and caregivers through a personalized, one-on-one connection with someone who has been there.”
• Location: Nationwide

Care Packages

Kits to Heart

• What they do: Provide free care packages to cancer patients across the U.S.
• Location: Nationwide

Integrative Medicine Support

Charlotte Maxwell Clinic – Integrative Cancer Care

• What they do: Offers free complementary therapies for low-income, underserved, and immigrant women with cancer. Services include acupuncture, massage & bodywork, energy work, movement therapy, nutrition education, and herbs.
• Location: San Francisco Bay Area

Organizations by Cancer Type

Bladder cancer organizations

Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network (BCAN)

• What they do: Resource of educational and support programs and materials for the more than 81,000 patients who will be diagnosed this year in America.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education

Brain cancer organizations

American Brain Tumor Association

• What they do: Provide comprehensive resources that support the complex needs of brain tumor patients and caregivers, as well as the critical funding of research.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

National Brain Tumor Society

• What they do: Invests in, mobilizes, and unites the brain tumor community to discover a cure, deliver effective treatments, and advocate for patients and care partners.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education

Breast cancer organizations

Bay Area Young Survivors

• What they do: A support and action group for young women in the SF Bay Area who are living with breast cancer.
• Location: San Francisco Bay Area
• Patient services offered: Support Groups

Living Beyond Breast Cancer

• What they do: Provide information, community and support that you can trust, is easy for you to access and respectful of you and your situation.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

Project Life

• What they do: An online home for metastatic breast cancer patients and their loved ones, Project Life is designed to support all facets of wellness: from financial and social, to spiritual, physical and emotional.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation

• What they do: Address breast cancer on multiple fronts such as research, community health, global outreach and public policy initiatives in order to make the biggest impact against breast cancer.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Education | Support Groups | Financial Assistance

Young Survival Coalition

• What they do: Strengthens the community, addresses the unique needs, amplifies the voice and improves the quality of life of young adults affected by breast cancer, locally, nationally and internationally.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

“I’m part of Bay Area Young Survivors and so that group has been good to kind of bounce off [what doctors] people have used.”

Doreen DiSalvo, breast cancer survivor

Cervical cancer organizations

Colon cancer organizations

Colon Cancer Coalition

• What they do: Empower local communities to promote prevention and early detection of colon cancer, and to provide support to those affected.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education

Colorectal Cancer Alliance

• What they do: Raise awareness of preventive measures; provides support for patients, caregivers, and survivors.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups | Financial Assistance

COLONTOWN

• What they do: COLONTOWN is an online community of more than 120 “secret” groups on Facebook for colorectal cancer patients, survivors, and carepartners. They offer educational resources and live webinars.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

The Colon Club

• What they do: The Colon Club connects young adults diagnosed with colorectal cancer so they never have to feel alone.
• Location: New York State
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

Kidney cancer organizations

Kidney Cancer Association

• What they do: The world’s first international charity dedicated specifically to the eradication of death and suffering from renal cancers.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education

Lung cancer organizations

GO2 for Lung Cancer

• What they do: Created to eradicate lung cancer through research, early detection, education, prevention and treatment, GO2 offers one-on-one assistance, supportive connections, treatment information, and finding care.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Education | Support Groups

Lungevity

• What they do: Lungevity is dedicated to funding scientific research, provide programs for those with lung cancer today, and offers extensive educational and peer-to-peer support resources for those impacted by lung cancer.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Education | Support Groups

Blood cancer organizations

Be The Match

• What they do: Global leader in bone marrow transplantation, conducting research to improve transplant outcomes provide support and resources for patients.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups | Donation Matching

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS)

• What they do: The largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding research, finding cures and ensuring access to treatments for blood cancer patients.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups | Financial Assistance

“I was also able to partner with Adapt Clothing and (founder) Evan Lessler to release the “Heliconquer” shirt to fundraise for the blood cancer non-profit Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. We were able to raise thousands of dollars for cancer research to LLS.org”

Helicon Kuan, Hodgkin lymphoma survivor

International Myeloma Foundation

• What they do: Dedicated to improving the quality of life of myeloma patients while working toward prevention and a cure.
• Location: Global
• Patient services offered: Advocacy | Education | Support Groups

MyelomaCrowd (HealthTree)

• What they do: Help patients navigate their myeloma over the lifetime of their disease.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Advocacy | Education | Support Groups

Ovarian cancer organizations

National Ovarian Cancer Coalition

• What they do: Educate communities and increase awareness about the symptoms of ovarian cancer.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Alliance (OCRFA)

• What they do: The largest global charitable organization dedicated to advancing ovarian cancer research while supporting women and their families.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

Pancreatic cancer organizations

Pancreatic Cancer Action Network

• What they do: Provide support, resources, volunteer opportunities and hope for people fighting pancreatic cancer.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Education | Support Groups

Prostate cancer organizations

Prostate Cancer Foundation

• What they do: PCF funds research to improve the prevention, detection and treatment of prostate cancer and ultimately cure it for good.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

Us TOO International

• What they do: Provide comprehensive educational materials and resources along with support services that include more than 200 volunteer-led support groups across the U.S. and abroad.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

Zero: The End of Prostrate Cancer

• What they do: Dedicated to prostate cancer education, testing, patient support, research and advocacy.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Education | Support Groups

Sarcoma organizations

Sarcoma Alliance

• What they do: Improve the lives of people affected by sarcoma through accurate diagnosis, improved access to care, guidance, education, and support.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups | Financial Assistance

Cancer organizations for specific populations

Latinas Contra Cancer

• What they do: Address the void in culturally and linguistically sensitive programs that meet the health care needs of Latinos around issues of cancer.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Education | Language Translation

National LGBT Cancer Network

• What they do: The National LGBT Cancer Network works to improve the lives of LGBT cancer survivors and those at risk by educating, training, and advocating.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups

New Hope Chinese Cancer Care Foundation

• What they do: Regular forums where oncologists will provide volunteer consultations for (Chinese-speaking) cancer patients in need.
• Location: San Francisco Bay Area
• Patient services offered: Education | Support Groups | Transportation Assistance

Pediatric cancer organizations

American Childhood Cancer Organization (ACCO)

• What they do: A community of families, survivors, and friends who have been affected by childhood and adolescent cancer.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Guidance | Education

Children’s Cancer Center

• What they do: Dedicated to serving families of children who have cancer or chronic blood disorders.
• Location: Maryland, D.C. and Northern Virginia

Cure Childhood Cancer

• What they do: Focuses entirely on children’s cancer efforts and funds the work of some of the best and brightest scientists in the field of pediatric cancer.
• Location: Nationwide

Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC)

• What they do: Helping millions of families with sick children find comfort and support when they need it most.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Housing Assistance

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

• What they do: Advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment.
• Location: Nationwide
• Patient services offered: Treatment | Financial Assistance

Cancer research organizations

American Society of Clinical Oncology – Cancer.net

• What they do: Doctor-approved patient information across many cancer types.

Cancer Research Institute

• What they do: Dedicated exclusively to advancing immunotherapy to treat, control, and cure all cancers.

Conquer Cancer Foundation of the American Society of Clinical Oncology

• What they do: Founded by the foremost cancer doctors of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) to seek dramatic advances in the prevention, treatment, and cures of all types of cancer.

Lustgarten Foundation

• What they do: The largest private foundation dedicated solely to funding pancreatic cancer research.

National Comprehensive Cancer Network

• What they do: A not-for-profit alliance of 28 leading cancer centers devoted to patient care, research, and education.

“It’s very hard to penetrate into the medical field and find who the true experts are. It helps to see, for example, people who are members of national organizations who are doing research in specific areas of interest. People who are part of what we call the NCCN, National Comprehensive Cancer Network. I think those are good starting points. ”

Dr. Babis Andreadis, UCSF

National Pediatric Cancer Foundation

• What they do: Dedicated to funding research to eliminate childhood cancer. Our focus is to fund research to fast-track less toxic, more targeted treatments by partnering with 22 leading hospitals nationwide.

Activities

First Descents

• What they do: Offer outdoor adventures, skills development, and local adventure communities to help improve long-term survivorship of young adults impacted by cancer and other serious health conditions.

Wig Assistance

TRS Care

• What they do: Help cancer patients and survivors qualify for wigs and post-mastectomy essentials through their insurance at no cost to them.
• Location: United States
• Patient services offered: Work directly with insurance providers to verify patient eligibility and file claims on their behalf. Our services are completely free to all our patients.

International Cancer Resources

Kenzie’s Gift

• What they do: “New Zealand’s leading charity committed to improving the emotional well-being and mental health of children, young people and their families affected by cancer, serious illness or bereavement.”
• Location: New Zealand
• Patient services offered: One to one therapy sessions, kits to help families navigate through serious illness

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