Program can assist cancer patients, their families

Name of program: Cancer Patient Care.

What it does: This program provides emergency assistance and emotional support to cancer patients and their families or caregivers, according to Cliff Evans, executive director.

Sometimes clients need gasoline money to get to their next doctor’s appointment. Sometimes it’s nice for the client to have money to buy their kids’ favorite cereal at the grocery store.

Evans said that recently he met two women who had lost their husbands to cancer and their electricity was about to be turned off. The program wrote them checks to keep their power on.

Cancer Patient Care has a wig room and provides breast prostheses, liquid food supplements and community outreach.

Much of the time, the program provides emotional support to both patients and their caregivers.

Who runs it: Cancer Patient Care is independent of any larger network. It gets some grants from the city and the county, but the majority of its funds come from donations and fundraisers.

All the money it receives is used locally.

How to get help: Anyone who has been diagnosed with cancer, is in treatment, or has been in treatment within the past six months can call the program at 456-0446.

Clients must meet maximum income requirements; however the program accepts people who make up to 3 1/2 times the poverty level.

Typical client: “Cancer touches everyone,” said Evans.

He said that he has seen patients who are 3 months old and patients that are in their 70s and 80s.

About 30 percent of patients are senior citizens and many of them are college students.

How to help: Cancer Patient Care is always in need of donations. Donors can give money or medical supplies, but the program can’t accept medications. It receives a lot of donations from local businesses, such as one company that designed, created and is now hosting its Web site, www.cancerpatientcare.org. The program even accepts donations online.

Volunteers are also needed for some programs.

“Every cancer patient needs to know that someone gives a darn,” Evans said.