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11 Thoughtful Holiday Gifts for Cancer Patients in Active Treatment


A photo of brightly colored holiday gifts selected for a mesothelioma patient.

Holiday gift-buying can be hard and even stressful during any phase of life. But it can be especially challenging for anyone buying gifts for cancer patients, including those with mesothelioma. To help anyone struggling with this task, we searched for patient perspectives on the best gifts.

We read countless forum posts, cancer center pages and personal stories. Then, we pulled the best cancer patient gifts into the list below. We hope this list will help you brighten the holiday season for any loved ones battling cancer.

Wondering what the holidays are like for a cancer patient? Mesothelioma survivor Heather Von St. James has talked about it. Read about her holiday experience with mesothelioma here.

1: Fewer Chores With a Cleaning Service Gift Card

A picture of a mop on a floor as a cleaning service tidies up for a cancer patient.

What Makes This Gift Great

Treatments like chemotherapy and radiation often leave patients exhausted. Tidying and cleaning the house can be the last thing any cancer patient has energy for. The gift of housecleaning can take several chores off a patient’s plate. A cleaning service may also help the patient feel more comfortable and relaxed in their tidied home.

One patient called their house cleaning gift “amazing.”

Where to Get It

  • Some national services like Molly Maid™ and MaidPro offer gift certificates on their websites.
  • Local house cleaners can be found with a quick search online. Some may require a phone call or in-person visit to secure a gift card.

Thoughtful Touches

Consider asking the recipient if they would like help coordinating the cleaning service. This may relieve some mental burdens and make the whole process easier for them.

2: A Surprise Message From a Favorite Band or Celebrity

A photo of a major concert.

What Makes This Gift Great

This gift can bring some unique lightness to your loved one’s holiday season. Many cancer patients understandably struggle with depression and anxiety. These conditions can make it tough to find moments of joy. A personal message from a band or celebrity could be a surprising and heartening bright spot. It might also provide a rare moment of complete distraction, allowing them to not think about cancer for a few minutes.

Does the cancer patient in your life love The Office? Imagine how surprised and delighted they might be if Kate Flannery (Meredith) sent an encouraging message. One recipient of a surprise video from a favorite band called it “more than [the patient] could have ever dreamed of.”

Where to Get It

Cameo offers custom videos and live video calls from a wide range of actors, athletes and celebrities.

Thoughtful Touches

Read reviews of potential Cameo creators before committing. A little research can help you choose one who will do the best job and really boost the patient’s spirits.

3: Food They Actually Want to Eat

A picture of delicious food delivered to a cancer patient as a gift.

What Makes This Gift Great

Cancer treatment can change a person’s sense of taste or smell. This may make cooking impossible. The patient may also lose interest in foods they used to love. But thoughtful gifts can help make it easier for patients to eat nourishing food they like.

Gift cards for food delivery services let the patient choose what they want out of many available choices. A grocery delivery gift card can ensure the patient has money dedicated to good nutrition that comes right to their door. Both options give the patient flexibility to try different foods when an everyday meal seems unappetizing.

Where to Get It

  • National delivery services like DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats offer gift cards on their websites.
  • Instacart delivers orders from many different grocers across the country and offers gift cards online.

Thoughtful Touches

If you and the gift card recipient live in different areas, do a bit of research before you buy. Make sure the service you choose has lots of options in the patient’s location.

4: High-Quality Self-Care Through Professional Massage

A photo of a man getting a massage after receiving a gift for a free massage to cheer them up after a cancer diagnosis.

What Makes This Gift Great

Cancer treatment can leave patients feeling physically drained. It may also leave them with pain in various places. Experts recommend massage therapy as a way to help manage these symptoms.

Interested in complementary and alternative treatments like massage for mesothelioma? Learn more here.

But cost can be a concern, especially around the holidays. Patients may worry about spending money on a massage, despite its potential benefits. So friends or loved ones can give them a gift certificate. The gift of massage can help reduce anxiety, depression, pain and fatigue. It may also help improve the patient’s sleep.

Where to Get It

  • Large massage chains offer massages in a spa-like environment. Gift cards are available from several chains.
  • Newer companies offer the convenience of in-home massages and app-based scheduling. You can find them in the app store of your mobile device.
  • The Society for Oncology Massage has a directory of preferred therapists. Some may offer gift cards online or over the phone.

Thoughtful Touches

Check with the recipient to see if the in-home or traditional massage environment would make them more comfortable. If they choose traditional, consider offering transportation to and from the massage. This may relieve some of the mental burdens and encourage the recipient to redeem their gift.

You can also call ahead before buying a gift card to confirm the company offers massages for cancer patients.

5: A Personalized Care Package

A photo of a gift basket overflowing with luxurious personal care items for a cancer patient.

What Makes This Gift Great

Every cancer patient has their own stressors and ways of managing them. A personalized care package allows you to tailor the gift to the patient’s needs and preferences. Comfy clothes like fluffy socks, soft slippers, and a luxurious robe can increase comfort in an uncomfortable situation. A book of crosswords or Sudoku may help distract a puzzle lover.

Where to Get It

  • Several online shops offer care packages designed for cancer patients. Some have unscented, gentle skincare products or comforting wraps and socks.
  • Make a care package yourself. Fill a box or basket with small items that the patient will find helpful, distracting or surprisingly joyous.

Thoughtful Touches

Consider including a personal note explaining some or all of the items in the care package. A blanket or scarf may help keep them company when you cannot. A loud toy (like this one) might help them stave off a conversation when they just don’t feel like it. Inside jokes or hidden meanings could also make the patient’s day.

6: Fun Plans for the Near Future

A photo of a couple on a gifted vacation gazing upon the ocean after a battle with mesothelioma.

What Makes This Gift Great

A cancer diagnosis can bring normal life to a screeching halt. Previously planned trips or vacations may get rescheduled to make room for treatment. And getaway funds may turn into treatment funds. A gifted trip or experience can provide cancer patients with a much-needed break from their disease and its many implications. It can also help patients make cherished memories that do not focus on cancer or its treatment.

Trips can be expensive, especially if they include loved ones. Luckily, several organizations help cancer patients take fun trips with their families at little to no cost. Some go so far as to plan every detail and provide spending money. Nominating a patient for a paid family trip is a massive gift that could bring so much joy.

Where to Get It

Thoughtful Touches

Look into the types of trips available through foundations before nominating a patient. In some cases, the options may not work well for the patient. If so, you might consider crowd-funding a getaway amongst the patient’s friends and family. The foundations mentioned earlier may be able to help you plan the perfect trip once the costs are covered.

7: Comfy Clothes

A photo of a cancer patient wearing comfy clothes he received as a holiday gift.

What Makes This Gift Great

Cancer symptoms and treatments themselves can cause discomfort, but some clothing choices may make things worse. In cold infusion rooms, patients often welcome comfy layering cardigans, soft tees and fuzzy slippers. Custom-made clothes may help patients navigate ports and drains more easily.

Carefully selected clothes can make a patient’s treatment experience much more comfortable.

Where to Get It

Thoughtful Touches

Take some time to understand the recipient’s treatment plan before buying them specialized clothes. If the plan is unclear, consider going generic with soft cardigans, scarves, socks and slippers. A gift card also gives the patient the freedom to choose exactly what they like and need.

8: Soft Blankets With Special Meaning

A photo of a snuggly, purple blanket that could be a gift for a mesothelioma patient.

What Makes This Gift Great

Hospitals and infusion centers are notoriously cold, but a plush fleece blanket can help a patient stay comfortable. Will they stay even cozier if the blanket is printed with a life-size collage of friends and family? Probably not. But a photo collage fleece blanket might improve a cancer patient’s spirits in a hospital or at home.

Where to Get It

  • Personalization Mall offers photo-customized fleece blankets through its photo center.
  • Shutterfly® has a wide selection of fleece photo blankets on its website.

Thoughtful Touches

Ordering a photo-customized gift takes time and photo access. Consider the types of photos that might make your recipient laugh or smile the most. Ask the recipient’s friends and loved ones to help track down the best photos for this project.

9: Cancer-Conscious Skincare

A photo of cancer-friendly skincare products.

What Makes This Gift Great

Cancer treatments can dry out and irritate the patient’s skin. Fragrances and additives in normal skincare products may not soothe this irritation. Some may make it worse. Face and body care products without dyes, fragrances or preservatives can help. But they may be tough to track down.

A cancer-conscious skincare gift can help lessen irritation and save patients the brain drain of hunting down good products themselves.

Thoughtful Touches

Consider including a pair of simple cotton gloves and socks with this gift. Patients can moisturize their hands and feet and then cover them to help hold in the moisture. The gloves and socks may also help protect a cancer patient’s delicate skin.

10: Infusion-Friendly Distractions

A cancer patient reading a book on her tablet while waiting for treatment.

What Makes This Gift Great

Chemotherapy and immunotherapy infusions can take hours. Patients may pass the time more easily with a variety of distractions. A tablet or e-reader can hold a library’s worth of books in a very small space. For patients who like streaming, comfortable headphones with a long-lasting battery may make all the difference.

Looking for information about immunotherapy and mesothelioma? Learn more here.

Does your recipient have a mobile device but no streaming services? There are gift cards for that. Does your recipient hate technology? A coloring book for grown-ups with a nice set of coloring pencils or watercolors might provide a welcome brain break.

Where to Get It

  • Online retailers offer several affordable tablets. You can find a few other options at brick-and-mortar stores, but they may be less affordable.
  • Streaming services like Hulu and Netflix offer gift cards through online and local retailers.

Thoughtful Touches

Consider your recipient’s overall comfort level with technology when giving this gift. If you think the patient may struggle to set up a tablet or streaming subscription, offer to help them do that. Give them a quick tour of any new devices. Then ask them to take you through the tour. This can help ensure they know where to find the apps and functions they like best.

11. Whatever You Would Normally Get

Some patients understandably do not want cancer-centric gifts. They want you to give them whatever gift you would have chosen if they did not have cancer. This may be the secret, best gift on this list. Why? Because a thoughtful gift that has a personal touch from a concerned friend may be all a cancer patient needs to know you care.