Grant Funds Expand Cancer Transportation and Lodging in Sagadahoc County

On December 14, 2025 the Maine Cancer Foundation announced a two year grant program totaling roughly $660,000 aimed at easing travel and lodging barriers that impede cancer care in rural communities. The funding, provided in partnership with the John T. Gorman Foundation, will support a range of services that directly affect Sagadahoc County patients and families who must travel for chemotherapy, radiation, and oncology consultations.

Among the awards, the Dean Snell Cancer Foundation in Brunswick received $60,000 to expand its Patient Transportation and Lodging Program. The grant will be used to increase the number of rides available to treatment, secure or subsidize lodging close to treatment centers, and provide mileage reimbursement and other supports for patients traveling from Sagadahoc County and surrounding towns. Program staff plan to use the funds to grow capacity immediately and to coordinate with regional providers to reduce missed appointments caused by transportation challenges.

The foundation commissioned a needs assessment to guide investments. That analysis highlighted long travel distances and limited public transit as persistent barriers for many rural patients. Key recommendations included bolstering volunteer driver networks, improving coordination and data sharing among providers and community programs, and increasing flexible funding for direct patient supports. The grant awards are intended to act on those recommendations by funding both direct services and efforts to strengthen local systems that connect patients to rides and lodging.

For Sagadahoc County residents the investments aim to lower practical obstacles to timely care, reduce stress on families who transport loved ones, and cut out of pocket costs associated with travel. Local health and nonprofit leaders said the grants should help sustain volunteer driver programs and expand lodging options near major treatment centers so patients can keep critical appointments.

The initiative represents an effort to translate statewide assessment findings into tangible local supports. The Maine Cancer Foundation and its partners intend the funding to be a first step toward more coordinated, data informed transportation and lodging systems that can better serve rural cancer patients in Sagadahoc County and beyond.