Doug Zimba’s youngest daughter, Carley, was only 3 years old when she was diagnosed with leukemia in 1996. Carley required treatment in Toronto, a four-hour drive from their hometown. During this time, their family experienced the cost of cancer firsthand, including various out-of-pocket costs.

Now almost thirty years later, Carley has no evidence of disease and is doing well. Since then, Doug has also faced cancer in being one of his mother-in-law’s primary caregivers until she passed away in 2015.

Today, Doug speaks to the need to minimize the cost of cancer and works to help others going through similar experiences by volunteering as a driver with the CCS Wheels of Hope program. He’s also previously participated in and donated to Relay For Life.

Cancer experience

In late 1995, Doug’s daughter, Carley, became sick. She was brought to see a doctor, who believed she was experiencing a milk intolerance. In June of the following year though, Doug and his wife were told Carley needed to be airlifted to see a pediatrician in Toronto right away.

Still processing the news, Doug was told that only one adult was able to fly with Carley to Toronto. Being almost a four-hour drive away and feeling overwhelmed with emotions, Doug knew driving wasn’t an option for him. Thankfully, he was able to make his way onto the plane and travel with his wife and daughter. The next day, Carley was diagnosed with leukemia at only 3 years old.

Requiring ongoing treatment in Toronto, Carley and her mother lived separately from the rest of their family for the next seven months. Doug and his oldest daughter made the trek from their home in North Bay every weekend, facing both the financial cost of cancer and other challenges, such as poor weather.

After completing her treatment, Carley was able to return home and travelled to Toronto for check-ups for the next seven years. Now almost thirty years later, Carley has no evidence of disease and is doing well.

Since then, cancer touched Doug’s life again when he became one of his mother-in-law’s primary caregivers. Alongside taking care of his mother-in-law following her cancer diagnosis, Doug also advocated for her health needs to doctors and personal support workers. About a year after her diagnosis, she passed away in 2015.

• “I was told to drive and meet my wife and daughter who were flying down to Toronto, but in that state, with my daughter, I couldn’t do it. That’s four hours away and I couldn’t think straight.”
• “After my daughter’s diagnosis, we were sort of thrown into the system. It was terrifying. She was only three years old, so you become pretty protective of somebody that can’t speak for themselves.”
• “I’ve been through both a child being sick with cancer and an adult dying from it. All you can do is deal with it as it comes and try to enjoy life.”
• “I want to share our story so others can see there’s an end to the path, and that it can be a good ending. My daughter’s thirty years old now and has no evidence of cancer. Our story is good.”

Cost of cancer

After Doug’s youngest daughter, Carley, was diagnosed with leukemia at only 3 years old, she required ongoing treatment in Toronto, more than 350km from the family’s home. This was nearly a four-hour drive from their hometown, so Carley and her mother ended-up lived separately from the rest of their family for the next seven months.

During this time, Doug and his oldest daughter made the trek from their home in North Bay every weekend to see them. This brought on various out-of-pocket costs, including the cost of gas, accommodations, and food for Doug and his daughter while they visited. On top of that, they had to contend with other external challenges, such as poor weather while traveling during the winter.

At one point, Doug’s car also broke down and he had to jump through hoops to get the financing for a new one. With the extra expenses, their family fell behind on bill payments and was strained financially.

Today, Doug speaks to the need to minimize the cost of cancer and works to help others going through similar experiences by volunteering as a driver with the Wheels of Hope program.

• “There needs to be a change because a lot of people can’t afford to have cancer. The price is phenomenal, for everybody, no matter what their situation is.”
• “The travel was a strain on everything; our family, our personal lives, our work. This time was quite hard financially, but you’re still going to do it.”
• “We were behind on our bills a few times and I just told the bank, ‘Do what you got to do.’ Thankfully, it all worked out, but it was a big worry because we didn’t know what was going to happen.”
• “My daughter and I would go down to Toronto every Friday night and come back every Sunday night for seven months to be with the rest of our family. We had to pay for all that ourselves.”
• “I remember one client that I was driving with the Wheels of Hope program to Sudbury told me he’s on a pension plan. He said his money either goes into paying for fuel to heat the house, or to his cancer drugs. He was having a hard time deciding.”

Wheels of Hope

At the beginning of 2024, Doug learned about the Wheels of Hope (WOH) program after looking for new ways to volunteer. After experiencing the cost of cancer firsthand, he knew he wanted to give back to others going through similar experiences by becoming a volunteer driver.

Today, Doug drives with the WOH program one to two days per week. He enjoys learning his clients’ stories and truly cherishes the relationships he’s made through the program.

Looking back, he believes that WOH would’ve helped his family during his daughter’s treatment by alleviating a lot of stress, both financially and emotionally.

• “When the opportunity came to volunteer for the Wheels of Hope program, I knew I wanted to jump on it. I like driving and the clients are great. And I’m having a blast doing it!”
• “There was one time I was driving a 9-year-old girl and her mother. The daughter’s appointment was delayed so the mother kept apologizing to me. I told her, ‘You never need to apologize to me about waiting. If I wait five hours, six hours, it’s no big deal. I’ll do it.’ Now, they always request me as their driver. It’s a neat feeling to have someone feel comfortable with you like that.”
• “I have friends everywhere I go now because of volunteering with Wheels of Hope.”
• “I know what the client is going through to a certain degree, so I don’t have any problem waiting for them while they are at their appointments. Whatever it takes, we’ll make sure they’re taken care of.”
• “Sometimes the clients just need to talk; to get their problems out to somebody that has no knowledge of who they are. So, I listen to them and help in whatever way I can.”
• “I like to tell people my daughter’s story because when people are in hardships, they like to hear the stories that are good stories. I’ve been through something similar to them, and at the end of the tunnel, everything turned out good.”
• “Wheels of Hope would’ve benefited my family by taking my wife and daughter down to Toronto. I wouldn’t have had to take so much time off work and lose money, which would’ve been so helpful financially in the long run.”