The American Cancer Society And AdventHealth Announce Partnership to Improve Access to Care

May 21, 2019 — ORLANDO, FL – May 21, 2019 — The American Cancer Society (ACS) and AdventHealth today announced a new partnership to increase access to care for cancer patients in Central Florida. As the exclusive Central Florida partner for the ACS Road To Recovery program, AdventHealth will work with ACS to expand the reach of the service, which provides free rides to and from cancer treatment appointments.

For many cancer patients, getting to treatment appointments is the greatest barrier standing between them and the care they need. Road To Recovery has provided more than 8.5 million rides to cancer patients since 2005.

“The American Cancer Society is excited about this opportunity to grow our long-standing relationship with AdventHealth to attack cancer from every angle,” said Megan Wessel, ACS Southeast Region vice president of cancer control. “Access to care is one of the most significant problems many patients face. This partnership will provide much needed help to patients and caregivers in Central Florida.”

There are approximately 12,000 newly diagnosed cancer patients in Central Florida each year. Last year, ACS received more than 9,000 requests for rides and were able to provide more than 6,000 of those trips. Thanks to this partnership with AdventHealth, the American Cancer Society now has the potential to provide more than 16,000 rides in the next two years to cancer patients in metro Orlando and surrounding counties.

“At AdventHealth a key part of our mission is providing easy access to care,” said Dr. Mark Socinski, executive medical director of the AdventHealth Cancer Institute. “Road to Recovery takes the burden of getting to and from their appointments off our patients, and lets them focus on getting the treatment they need.”

Interested drivers can sign up to volunteer by visiting cancer.org/drive. All volunteer drivers will be asked to complete a simple training and screening process. Patients can request to schedule a ride by calling Call800-227-2345.