Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Facing cancer is hard and can be exceptionally lonely. Academic research has shown that those individuals facing cancer who have strong emotional and mental health support generally have more positive outcomes with their cancer journey than those lacking in emotional and mental health support. The mission of CanCare is to provide a survivor by the side of anyone facing cancer. Having a relationship with someone who has faced the challenges you are facing and successfully overcome them can be a powerful factor in the cancer success journey. By providing a survivor by the side of those facing cancer, CanCare is providing hope and healing to our cancer community.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
One-on-One Support Program
CanCare is a mighty community of survivors who lift up and inspire cancer patients and caregivers through one-on-one support, empathy, and hope to ensure no one endures cancer alone. Our 700+ trained volunteers have survived cancer, and they want to help you do the same for yourself – or a loved one! Whether you need encouragement or want to give it, CanCare is the place for you. Support is available over the phone, via text, email and in person – one time or on an ongoing basis.
Founded by Anne Shaw Turnage, a survivor of colon cancer, CanCare has grown into a network of trained volunteers including survivors, caregivers of survivors and medical professionals who provide emotional support and cancer-related resources. Survivors of more than 75 different types of cancer are the heartbeat of the organization, providing hope, friendship and hospital visitations for those facing cancer.
Medical Facility Program
CanCare has been deemed a critical member of the medical cancer care team, helping to create a full-scale and wholesome treatment approach for cancer patients and their caregivers, focusing not just on the physical treatment component, but also, on the psychosocial element, which is critical to improving survivorship and the patient’s quality of life. CanCare partners with 11 Houston-area medical facilities to provide on-site volunteers who give immediate, quality emotional support to cancer patients and caregivers. This vital resource serves all demographic backgrounds, providing support to those feeling overwhelmed, stressed, or with nowhere else to turn. Our health care systems rely on our trained volunteers to ensure that their patients are receiving the best possible mental health care.“CanCare volunteers really care about the people they are supporting. Hospitals can do the physical healing, but you also need emotional and spiritual healing, and this is where CanCare comes in. I encourage cancer patients to seek support and know that they are not alone.” - Sue Chiang, Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital, Vice Chairman Board of Trustees
Where we work
Awards
External reviews

Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of clients served through one-on-one match
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Caregivers, Chronically ill people
Related Program
One-on-One Support Program
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Served more cancer patients and caregivers than any other year in our history.
Number of active hospital volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
People with diseases and illnesses
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Reports and documents
Download strategic planLearn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
By the end of 2022, CanCare aims to grow our reach:
-Growing one-one-one matches with a survivor to at least 1600.
-Growing interactions with cancer patients inside partner healthcare facilities to at least 28,000.
We will undergird this growth with strides in our technological and healthcare infrastructure.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
To grow our reach and service to the cancer community, we will:
-Refine and expand our marketing to those facing cancer, especially those cancer types where we have an abundance of volunteers ready to serve.
-Deploy a Healthcare Advisory Council which will provide strategic recommendations on growing our healthcare relationships and developing an up-to-date healthcare service model.
-Deploy a Technology Advisory Council to conduct a comprehensive technology assessment and provide recommendations on infrastructure improvements that will help us attain our goals.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
CanCare has 31 years of experience in serving the cancer community. We have an extensive network of more than 750 volunteers with unique skills to help us attain our strategic goals. Where we have gaps in expertise, we will partner with experts to guide us on the path to success.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
We have increased our applications for support and our volunteer applications by double in the past few months. Our Advisory Councils are launched and are actively in assessment and planning. We have launched new Board committees in alignment with our strategic objectives and they are hard at work in their respective areas of influence.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
Cancer patients and caregivers.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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What significant change resulted from feedback?
When faced with feedback from clients via surveys that some were not hearing from their volunteers timely, we implemented client follow up calls from a volunteer to check in and ensure that clients had successfully connected with their assigned volunteer.
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
CanCare, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 02/22/2023
Valerian Brock
Cullen Kappler
Patricia Hogan- Korge
Val Brock
Bernard Fields
Peter Forbes
Mark Holmes
George Kurisky
Taylor Landry
Dr. Rick Ngo
Megan Vondra
Gleeson Van Riet
Sandra Beno
Lloyd Rachal
Ishwaria Subbiah, MD
Jim Jimenez
Kelsey Wright
Ashley Dedmon
Lauren Goodwin
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 10/13/2022GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.