ROCK SPRINGS — The American Cancer Society has awarded a $3,000 grant to Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County’s Regional Cancer Center to address the transportation needs of local cancer.

Cancer patients undergoing treatment frequently require assistance getting to and from facilities, often creating a financial and logistical burden, according to a release from the hospital.

These grants are available to health systems, treatment centers, and community organizations in select communities through an application process. They focus on addressing the 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.”

Harris added that the grant could relieve more of the financial burden that comes with getting to and from treatments.

“It could mean the difference between a patient getting to all of their treatments or not,” she said. “It means so much to our patients and to us.”

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.

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