When John Goan picks up cancer patients, he's doing more than giving them a ride to treatment.
Goan, himself a 13-year survivor of colon cancer, also tries to give them some encouragement.
"Some types of cancer, you know their chances are not good; most of the time, they know that, too," Goan said. "But there are 12 million to 14 million cancer survivors out here. There's hope for any of them."
Goan, retired from a pharmaceutical sales company, has been a volunteer driver with the American Cancer Society's Road to Recovery program since May 1997. He and his wife, Ellen, both volunteer with the ACS, but "I quickly realized they needed drivers a lot more than they needed me underfoot in the office," he said, laughing.
Goan picks up cancer patients in Knox and surrounding counties and drives them to chemotherapy, radiation or medical appointments. He estimates he's driven about 80 patients, thousands of miles, over the years. Though he once was a regular on the radiation circuit -- driving patients who went for treatment five days a week for six weeks or more -- he's cut back a little, to six to eight trips a month.
Most are regular patients he's bonded with.
"He's like my spiritual father," said Betty McClendon, a survivor of liver, bone, breast and lung cancer who's been Goan's passenger for five years.
Without Goan, McClendon said, she'd have to schedule a rough ride on a bus, and then "wait and wait and wait" after her treatments, which are already exhausting.
But more than that, she looks forward to their visits, she said. Goan makes it his business to be educated about cancer and its treatments, and sometimes he helps her understand things her doctors tell her, she said.
Being a cancer survivor helps Goan relate to his passengers, he believes -- and prepares him for loss. About half of his former passengers have passed away.
"The average person, when they find out someone has cancer, they don't know what to say," Goan said. "They kind of pull back. ... Well, a lot of people with cancer would rather you didn't pull back."
Jessica Neefe, ACS health initiatives representative, said the 24 drivers in the Road to Recovery program really aren't enough to meet the need -- particularly as the economy forces some people to choose between pricey gas and necessities. Drivers are especially needed for the rural areas around Knoxville.
"All these surrounding towns have cancer patients, and they all need drivers to bring them in," said Goan, who's recently driven patients from LaFollette and Morristown.
Kristi L. Nelson may be reached at 865-342-6434. To see more of The Knoxville News-Sentinel or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.knoxnews.com. Copyright (c) 2009, The Knoxville News-Sentinel, Tenn. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
Copyright (C) 2009, The Knoxville News-Sentinel, Tenn.