American Cancer Society Hope Lodges Awarded Grants from McKesson Foundation

SAN FRANCISCO, May 18, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The McKesson Foundation today announced a grant of $475,000 to be awarded to 17 American Cancer Society Hope Lodges across the country. Hope Lodge offers cancer patients and their caregivers a free place to stay when their best hope for effective treatment may be in another city. The grants will also support the Society's Road To Recovery® program, which provides transportation to and from treatment for people with cancer who do not have a ride or are unable to drive themselves.

"We are so appreciative of the grants the McKesson Foundation has awarded to our Hope Lodge and Road To Recovery programs," said Kristen Solt, Managing Director, Hope Lodge Network. "This grant will enable us to provide 2,172 nights of lodging, and more than 900 cancer patients across the country will receive transportation to treatment appointments."

Nearly one quarter of people with cancer will exhaust all savings as a result of treatment costs, even with insurance and 11 percent of cancer patients cannot afford food and basic necessities due to treatment costs. Hope Lodge provides a nurturing, home-like environment where guests can retreat to private rooms or connect with others. Not having to worry about where to stay or how to pay for lodging allows guests to focus on getting well.

Another necessity is reliable transportation, which is essential to getting access to potentially lifesaving treatment. Every day, thousands of cancer patients are in need of a ride to treatment. The American Cancer Society's Road To Recovery program mobilizes volunteer drivers to donate their time and use of their personal vehicles so that patients can receive the critical treatments they need.

"In the McKesson Foundation's work with the American Cancer Society, we have seen firsthand our shared commitment to services for low-income cancer patients," said Christine Lopez, President, McKesson Foundation. "For these patients, a place to stay and transportation to treatment can be vital. We are honored to deepen our partnership through this grant to ACS Hope Lodges and the Road To Recovery program."

Today's announcement is just another example of the McKesson Foundation and American Cancer Society's partnership to support patients. For example, Giving Comfort, a program of the McKesson Foundation, provides care packages called "Comfort Kits" to low-income cancer patients at American Cancer Society Hope Lodges across the country. The Hope Lodges deliver the Comfort Kits, which are filled with basic comfort items ranging from warm, fuzzy socks to soft blankets and stuffed animals, into the hands of their patients who are undergoing draining and time-consuming treatments.

About McKesson Foundation
The McKesson Foundation is a healthcare foundation focused on providing funding to organizations that provide non-medical direct services to low-income cancer patients in the U.S. Each year the McKesson Foundation contributes more than $5.5 million to nonprofit organizations working to improve the health of our communities. Over the past three years, the Foundation has matched more than $3.3 million in employee donations to charitable organizations. For more information, please contact us at [email protected].

About the American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society combines an unyielding passion with nearly a century of experience to save lives and end suffering from cancer. As a global grassroots force of more than three million volunteers, we fight for every birthday threatened by every cancer in every community. We save lives by helping people stay well by preventing cancer or detecting it early; helping people get well by being there for them during and after a cancer diagnosis; by finding cures through investment in groundbreaking discovery; and by fighting back by rallying lawmakers to pass laws to defeat cancer and by rallying communities worldwide to join the fight. As the nation's largest non-governmental investor in cancer research, contributing more than $3.4 billion, we turn what we know about cancer into what we do. As a result, more than 11 million people in America who have had cancer and countless more who have avoided it will be celebrating birthdays this year. To learn more about us or to get help, call us any time, day or night, at 1-800-227-2345 or visit cancer.org.

SOURCE McKesson Foundation