Transparency
How to Vet a Cancer Charity in 5 Minutes
Generosity deserves due diligence. Here are the five checks we’d run before giving to any cancer charity, including this one, and our own answers to each, so you can hold us to the same standard.
1. Confirm it's a real 501(c)(3)
Search the charity's name or EIN in the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search at apps.irs.gov/app/eos. If it isn't listed, your gift may not be tax-deductible, and that's a red flag on its own.
Our answer
We're listed. Beat the Odds Sarcoma Fund, EIN 41-4419409, is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity. Search the EIN and see for yourself.
2. Find out who gets paid
Look for salaries on the charity's Form 990 or its website. Salaries aren't automatically bad, big programs need staff, but you deserve to know how much of your gift funds payroll.
Our answer
Nobody here draws a salary. The board is all volunteers, and the founder covers operating costs personally, so donated dollars go to patient travel.
3. Ask what your money concretely does
Vague missions are a warning sign. “Supporting patients” and “raising awareness” can mean almost anything. A legitimate charity can tell you the specific thing your gift funds.
Our answer
We run two programs. The Specialist Care Access Program books and pays travel so patients reach specialist care, and Patient Education & Navigation gives patients free tools to find and navigate it.
4. Check how the money moves
Cash handouts are hard to trace, even with good intentions. Ask whether the charity pays vendors directly or hands money to intermediaries.
Our answer
We don't hand out cash. Every booking is made directly in the patient's name, the airline, the hotel, the ride, so nothing gets lost along the way.
5. Look for a real person behind it
Who started it, and why? A charity with a named founder and a story you can verify is easier to trust than a logo with a donate button.
Our answer
Beat the Odds was founded by a sarcoma survivor, a Navy veteran who got specialist care because he happened to live near a sarcoma center, and who built this fund so distance stops deciding who gets that care. His story is on this site.
Watch us work
One short email a month with what the fund actually did. The patients who traveled, and where the money went. Judge us by it, unsubscribe anytime.
Already satisfied? Gifts of any size pool together to fund patient trips.
Donate to Patient TravelBeat the Odds Sarcoma Fund is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit, EIN 41-4419409. Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent permitted by law.