Drivers Needed For Cancer Patients

To the editor:

More than 70,000 Pennsylvania residents will learn that they have cancer this year. For many, getting the treatment they need may be a problem.

A patient requiring radiation therapy could need anywhere from 20 to 30 trips for treatment in six weeks. A patient receiving chemotherapy might report for treatment weekly for up to a year.

In many cases, a patient is driven to hospitals or clinics by relatives or friends, but even these patients must occasionally seek alternative transportation.

That's where "Road to Recovery" comes in. It is a program of volunteers who drive patients to treatment centers and home again. Our local American Cancer Society chapter needs volunteer drivers.

Road to Recovery volunteers arrange their own schedules, with some volunteering as little as one afternoon a month and others driving patients as often as twice a week. The American Cancer Society can provide some compensation for expenses, including gas, tolls, and parking.

If you have a car and some spare time, you can help. To learn more, please contact me at 1-800-458-3856, ext. 3509.

Lora A. Cope American Cancer Society