Round Barn Oncology team addresses food insecurity among patients fighting for their lives

When Round Barn Oncology Center Nurse Manager Katie Bower noticed cancer patients taking handfuls of crackers and juice boxes from her infusion department’s snack basket, she and her team, including clinical research coordinator Melissa Ulrich and Foundation Board member Gary Johanson, M.D., recognized something unexpected: food insecurity among patients already fighting for their lives.

“We knew there was a need, but we had no idea how deep this need was,” Katie reflects on launching the Nourish Food Pantry at the cancer center. What began as patients discreetly stockpiling basic snacks has evolved into a comprehensive program addressing multiple barriers cancer patients face.

The connection between nutrition and healing extends far beyond addressing hunger. Consider the stark reality: 80% of cancer patients become malnourished during treatment, dramatically reducing their chances of successful recovery. Recent research shows food can literally serve as medicine — with outcomes that sometimes surpass traditional pharmaceutical interventions.

“Food is making us sick. Food can make us better, but it’s not the same food,” explains Cathryn Couch, executive director of Ceres, one of Providence Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital’s community partners that provides medically tailored meals to vulnerable populations. Referencing a study of 244 patients with uncontrolled diabetes, Cathryn shares that those receiving seven medically tailored meals weekly saw diabetes improvements that, as one doctor noted, “I can’t achieve with drugs.”

The Nourish pantry, deliberately named to avoid stigmatizing language, operates on a no-questions-asked basis. Partnering with Redwood Empire Food Bank, the center accesses donated food while addressing more than traditional hunger. Elderly patients who can arrange rides to treatment but not grocery stores find relief. Patients exhausted following seven-hour treatments avoid additional stops. The community aspect even encourages appetite. One woman reported that her husband, a Round Barn patient, began eating more simply because he saw others taking food.
The program integrates clinical care with cultural sensitivity. Staff focus on protein-rich foods essential for cancer patients rebuilding cells damaged by chemotherapy, while stocking masa for tortillas and jalapeños for the center’s large Hispanic population. Probiotic foods like kimchi support gut health during treatment.

Since August 2024, the team has distributed 132,000 pounds of food to Round Barn patients. But the transformation extends beyond physical health. “Sacred encounter after sacred encounter,” Bower describes patient interactions. During Thanksgiving, providing whole chickens brought tears and hugs. A single mother with four teenage boys received a 25-pound turkey sourced during a shopping appointment at the Redwood Empire Food Bank Food Connections Market — abundance replacing scarcity during an already challenging time.

Round Barn Oncology Center became the food bank’s 150th and largest partner, expanding to twice-weekly deliveries and satellite locations. To help increase the food pantry’s offerings, longtime Memorial supporter Rebecca Birdsall and the Green Foundation generously funded the pantry’s commercial refrigerator, giving Round Barn patients access to perishable food.

“They don’t just treat your illness,” one patient noted, “they make sure you have the right food to eat.” In addressing hunger, Round Barn caregivers discovered they were feeding something deeper — dignity, community and hope during patients’ most vulnerable moments.