Cancer nonprofits combine research, advocacy, fundraising, and direct services for people affected by cancer. Their reported figures show the scale of that work: the American Cancer Society serves more than 21,000 communities in the United States, while Macmillan supported 2.4 million people affected by cancer in the UK in 2024. The figures below come from the organizations’ named fact sheets, annual reports, and financial statements, with reporting periods and geography kept separate.
Contents
- How cancer nonprofits reach patients and families
- American Cancer Society investment and impact
- Macmillan caregiver and community support
- Cancer Research UK funding and research spending
- Susan G. Komen financial position
- What the financial figures measure
How cancer nonprofits reach patients and families
Cancer support nonprofits do more than fund laboratories. Their services can include information, assessments, nursing, palliative care, community programs, and digital support. Those functions matter to caregivers because practical help often has to be available alongside diagnosis and treatment rather than only after a research result.
The American Cancer Society serves more than 21,000 communities, according to its American Cancer Society Fact Sheet. That figure describes geographic reach in the United States, not a count of individual patients or caregivers. The same fact sheet reports more than 18 million cancer survivors living in the United States.
Macmillan’s Annual Report 2024 reports almost 3.5 million people with cancer in the UK. During 2024, Macmillan helped 2.4 million people affected by cancer. Its support included 484,000 people living with cancer reached through in-person, phone, and digital services. These measures are not directly comparable with the American Cancer Society’s community count: one describes communities served, while the other describes people helped or reached.
Macmillan also reported that its online community supported 286,000 people with cancer in 2024. More than 105,000 people visited Macmillan Information Centres during the same year. The organization supported more than 65,000 holistic needs assessments, a service measure that is especially relevant when a person with cancer and their family need help identifying practical, emotional, or financial concerns.
| Organization and period | Reported reach or service measure | Geography |
|---|---|---|
| American Cancer Society | More than 21,000 communities served | United States |
| Macmillan, 2024 | 2.4 million people affected by cancer helped | United Kingdom |
| Macmillan, 2024 | 484,000 people with cancer reached through in-person, phone, and digital services | United Kingdom |
| Macmillan, 2024 | 286,000 people with cancer supported online | United Kingdom |
| Macmillan, 2024 | More than 105,000 Information Centre visits | United Kingdom |
American Cancer Society investment and impact
The American Cancer Society Fact Sheet reports that 81% of the organization’s resources were invested in patient support, discovery, and advocacy in 2022. The reported dollar amounts show how those areas were distributed. Patient support received $354 million, discovery received $166 million, and advocacy received $46 million in 2022.
The same source reports $26 million used for management and general expenses and $107 million spent on fundraising expenses in 2022. These figures describe the organization’s reported uses of funds for that year. They should not be treated as a universal standard for every cancer nonprofit, since organizations use different accounting categories and reporting periods.
Research is a major part of the American Cancer Society’s role. Its fact sheet describes the organization as the largest funder of cancer research grants in the United States outside the federal government, with more than $5 billion invested over 75 years. The time span is cumulative, while the $354 million, $166 million, and $46 million figures are specific to 2022.
The American Cancer Society Fact Sheet also reports that the overall U.S. cancer death rate fell 33% since 1991. It says the organization’s work helped avoid nearly 4.1 million cancer deaths since 1991. These are historical impact statements covering the period beginning in 1991, rather than forecasts of future mortality.
The source further states that about 50% of cancer deaths could be eliminated through healthy lifestyle choices such as avoiding tobacco, eating healthy, and being physically active. This is presented as an estimate of preventable deaths associated with those choices, not as a count of deaths avoided by a particular program.
For caregivers, the key distinction is between direct support and broader public-health impact. Patient support funding can help people navigate cancer, while prevention, discovery, and advocacy operate at population or system level. The American Cancer Society figures report all four dimensions separately enough to show that nonprofit work is not limited to one service type.
Macmillan caregiver and community support
Macmillan’s Annual Report 2024 gives a detailed picture of support delivery in the UK. Macmillan nurses, support workers, and palliative care nurses reached approximately 700,000 people living with cancer in 2024. This is a people-reached measure, not a count of clinical appointments or a count of caregivers.
The organization’s community network also had a substantial volunteer component. Macmillan reported a community of more than 11,000 volunteers who gave more than 100,000 hours in 2024. Volunteer hours and people served measure different forms of capacity: the first describes contributed time, while the second describes service reach.
The 2024 report recorded more than 65,000 holistic needs assessments. For families and caregivers, this type of assessment can be an important point of contact because it recognizes that cancer affects needs beyond treatment alone. The supplied report figure does not break those assessments down by caregiver status, age, cancer type, or region, so those details cannot be inferred.
Macmillan’s £239.7 million raised in 2024 represented 98% of its total income, according to the Annual Report 2024. The report also says Macmillan raised £239.7 million in that year. This is fundraising and income information for a UK nonprofit and is not comparable as a currency amount with U.S. dollar figures without an exchange-rate method and date.
Support also extended through physical and online channels. More than 105,000 people visited Macmillan Information Centres, and 286,000 people with cancer used its online community in 2024. Taken together with the 484,000 people reached through in-person, phone, and digital services, these figures show multiple access routes, but they should not be added because the categories may overlap.
Cancer Research UK funding and research spending
Cancer Research UK’s Annual Report and Accounts 2024/25 reports £715 million of spending in 2024/25. It committed £419 million to cancer research, infrastructure, and investigator-led grants, and spent £403 million on cancer research during that reporting period. “Committed” and “spent” are different financial measures and should not be combined.
The organization raised £735 million in 2024/25. Within that total, it raised £530 million from regular gifts, philanthropic gifts, gifts in Wills, corporate partnerships, events, giving platforms, and social media challenges. It received £11 million from investments and other income, raised £59 million from licensing intellectual property, and raised £135 million through shops, superstores, and online marketplaces.
| Cancer Research UK measure, 2024/25 | Reported amount |
|---|---|
| Total spending | £715 million |
| Research, infrastructure, and investigator-led grants committed | £419 million |
| Cancer research spent | £403 million |
| Total raised | £735 million |
| Research-related broad fundraising sources | £530 million |
| Investments and other income | £11 million |
| Licensing intellectual property | £59 million |
| Shops, superstores, and online marketplaces | £135 million |
The annual report breaks research spending into several areas. Cancer Research UK spent nearly £26 million on research specific to cancers affecting ages 0 to 24 in 2024/25. It spent £93 million on research relevant to all types of cancer and £88 million on basic research. It also reported £20 million for research administration and support costs, £18 million for Cancer Research Horizons translational activity, £10 million for revenue shares, and £5 million for CancerTools.org.
These categories are useful when interpreting nonprofit research statistics. A broad all-cancer program, basic research, age-specific research, translational activity, and support costs answer different questions. The figures do not establish which category is most relevant to caregiver support, and the report does not provide a caregiver-specific allocation in the supplied information.
Susan G. Komen financial position
Susan G. Komen’s FY25 Financial Statements report total public support and revenue of $129,344,868 in fiscal year 2025. The organization was incorporated in July 1982. In fiscal year 2025, it held its Race for the Cure and MORE THAN PINK Walk series across the United States, and held its 3-Day Series in four U.S. cities.
At March 31, 2025, Susan G. Komen reported total net assets of $124,106,891 and total liabilities of $54,765,664. It reported cash and cash equivalents of $4,995,437, restricted cash of $7,168,020, and total cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash of $12,163,457. The statement also reported financial assets available for current use of $84,609,868 at year-end.
For fiscal year 2025, total expenses were $150,983,193. Direct benefits to donors and sponsors were $9,058,684. At March 31, 2025, grants payable, net of discount, were $45,550,351. These figures describe financial-statement categories and balances; they do not identify how much was spent specifically on caregiver programs.
The financial position figures also use different dates and concepts. Revenue and expenses cover fiscal year 2025, while net assets, liabilities, cash, and grants payable are balances at March 31, 2025. A year-end balance should not be read as a full-year flow of money.
What the financial figures measure
Cancer nonprofit statistics become more useful when each number is read alongside its definition. Reach may count people, communities, visits, or assessments. Funding may describe money raised, total income, money spent, a commitment, a balance sheet amount, or grants payable. These categories are not interchangeable.
The reported figures also span different geographies and periods. American Cancer Society figures include 2022 allocations and cumulative U.S. impact since 1991. Macmillan figures cover the UK in 2024. Cancer Research UK figures cover 2024/25, while Susan G. Komen figures cover fiscal year 2025 and include a March 31, 2025 year-end balance sheet.
For someone seeking caregiver support, service access measures are often more immediately practical than headline fundraising totals. Macmillan’s 484,000 people reached through in-person, phone, and digital services, its 286,000 online community users, its more than 65,000 holistic needs assessments, and its approximately 700,000 people reached by nurses and support workers describe different entry points into care. The reports do not show that every person in one category received every other service.
For donors and advocates, the funding figures provide a different lens. The American Cancer Society reported 81% of resources invested in patient support, discovery, and advocacy in 2022. Cancer Research UK reported £735 million raised and £715 million spent in 2024/25, alongside separate research commitments and spending categories. Susan G. Komen reported $129,344,868 in public support and revenue and $150,983,193 in total expenses for fiscal year 2025.
Reading the figures this way keeps the statistics grounded: nonprofit scale includes people reached, communities served, volunteers contributing time, research funded, services delivered, and financial resources reported for clearly defined periods.