We learn A TON going through cancer treatment! We’ve learned how to manage side effects of medications, resources that helped us through, coping mechanisms, and how to advocate for ourselves. After treatment, some survivors are ready to leave it all behind them and never look back. I certainly can’t blame them. Others, however, are looking for a way to help cancer patients still in active treatment. They want a way to share what they’ve learned so that the next person may get through their treatment with fewer bumps in the road.

There are certainly a number of ways to help cancer patients once treatment is over, no matter how much or how little time you may be able to commit. I’ve gathered up several ideas in this article to get you started.

Volunteer at Your Hospital’s Oncology Department

Odds are your hospital utilizes volunteers to help with the check-in process, guiding patients to their appointments (larger hospitals), and passing out snacks and water to those getting chemo. These volunteers are in a wonderful position to connect with those in treatment and build rapport. They may not have much free time to socialize seeing as they’re busy volunteering. But they do become a familiar face, which is HUGE when you’re nervous and going through something as awful as chemo.

Actually, I had quite a close bond with a few of the volunteers at my hospital. One older couple had claimed me as their adopted grandchild, and we always exchanged hugs and updates when I had chemo. Another volunteer was the sweetest little thing, and came in on her day off to celebrate my last chemo with me.

These volunteers are a blessing to both the hospital and the patients. Never underestimate the impact you could have on someone’s day serving as a volunteer in the oncology department!

Become a Mentor at Your Cancer Center

Some hospitals have begun programs that are kind of like big brothers/sisters and mentoring, but cancer style. They’ll match survivors who are out of treatment with those who are earlier in their diagnosis and may want a friend or mentor to help them get through. This is perfect for those who prefer to stay close to home and prefer a more one-on-one approach to helping others.

If your treatment center hasn’t adopted a program such as this, perhaps you’d be interested in starting one. This program could potentially be a mentally exhausting one as you’re helping someone still in the trenches of treatment, so be sure you’re mentally prepared for this. However, the benefits of providing advice about dealing with side effects and sharing what you know could make it all worthwhile.

Start a Blog or Write an eBook

A huge part of the reason I started this blog was to share my advice from treatment with others. (The other part was to inspire survivors to love life again after the trauma of treatment.) With treatment over and all the information you’ve gained, you could start your own blog to share what you know to help cancer patients.

If blogging isn’t your thing, perhaps you’d prefer to write an eBook or a small booklet. You could offer this eBook online through a landing page, or have copies printed to hand out at your cancer treatment center.

Write an Article for a Cancer Magazine

There are a variety of magazines and websites that allow cancer patients to share their stories. Some of these include the adolescent and young adult survivor magazine Elephants And Tea, which covers any cancer type. Other publications include Cancer Care, Cure Today, and your local chapter of the Cancer Support Community.

Maybe you’d prefer a more creative form of writing and submitting to Wildfire Magazine. This magazine is an incredible community for women “too young” for breast cancer. The magazine is published every other month, with each issue having a theme. There are some absolutely amazing articles published! This not only gives the writer a sense of healing in the form of writing, but it also can give words to what others have gone through but haven’t yet articulated. It’s a great way to feel connected to others and know you’re not alone in your experiences.

Volunteer with an Organization like Pink Ribbon Girls

Pink Ribbon Girls is a non-profit organization that provides free meals, transportation to appointments housecleaning, and community events for women with gynecological cancers. This organization began in Ohio and serves Columbus, Dayton, and Cincinnati, as well as St. Louis and the Bay Area (California).

Though I hadn’t had a need to use PRG during treatment, I do have several friends who have utilized their services and love them! I have also attended some of their community events and really enjoy the ladies I’ve met through this organization.

There may be another similar organization near you, if you don’t live in PRG’s zones. Or, potentially you’d be interested in starting such an organization!

Organize a Local Support Group for Cancer Patients

Perhaps your local cancer center already has support groups in place. Mine, however, was a smaller hospital, which didn’t have support groups. Others in the community, however, came together and started a Facebook group for those of us who are local, and organize meetups. We’ve been able to chat about advice, talk with others who understand, and vent about the frustrations of life after cancer. They’ve been casual meetups, but still wonderful to meet others who not only understand survivorship, but also know the same doctors I know.

Once you have a group together, perhaps you’d like to plan the occasional spa day or retreat.

This could prove especially useful to men. In my article on cancer retreats I share a few retreats that are specific to men. However, they are obviously much fewer in number than those for women. Perhaps men feel they can’t share their thoughts, or perhaps retreats don’t interest them the same way women are interested. But I think local support groups and retreats for men are a resource that is sorely lacking.

Advocacy and Legislation

If you’re interested in doing some good for the greater community but aren’t sure about starting up or joining support groups, perhaps advocacy work is up your alley.

I got involved with this early on thanks to Susan G. Komen. We received some training on what sorts of legislation they were working towards, with the opportunity to ask questions. Then we were off to our Statehouse to speak with legislators and House Representatives to bring awareness to our issues and concerns.

This was a great way to learn more about advocacy and laws about treatment and screening in Ohio. But it also gave us a chance to share our stories and the importance of screenings and access to treatment.

Donations to Help Cancer Patients

Of course, if you’d like to give back but don’t have the time or energy to do so, you could always donate to other causes. Perhaps donate to organizations like Pink Ribbon Girls who provide meals and cleaning. Or maybe you’d prefer retreats like Mary’s Place By the Sea, Casting for Recovery, First Descents, or Project Koru.

(Tip: Check out my post on cancer retreats for a brief summary of each to find which organization resonates with you the most.)

Other organizations provide financial aid for treatment. (Talk to your hospital’s financial department for possible resources.) And Cancer Support Community is an incredible organization that offers a variety of events for patients and survivors, including healthy cooking classes, exercise classes, support groups, educational events, and more.

The options really are endless if you’d like to give back financially. There are a TON of amazing organizations in the States!

Final Thoughts

I hope this list was helpful for you! If you’ve found another way to help and give back, feel free to share it in the comments.

And of course, thank you for just looking into this topic and seeing how you can help cancer patients after you. It can be hard to stay in “cancer land” after treatment, and sometimes giving back like this means lingering in cancer land in order to help the newly diagnosed. Take care of your mental health, and only take on what you feel you can after the trauma of treatment.

Warmest regards to you!

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