Head & Neck Cancer Alliance Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
363323142
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Charleston, SC, USA
Phone
8667924622
Rating
74
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Health

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$1,455,840
Expenses
$998,267
Assets
$2,654,664
Liabilities
$35,862

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

25 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Dr Michael Moore (President)

Highest reported compensation

  • Amanda Hollinger (Excecutive Director): $165,000 total reported compensation
  • Nanci L Bonfield (Director of Development): $127,050 total reported compensation
  • Eileen T Sexton (Director of Programs): $103,191 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Head and Neck Cancer Alliance (the "Alliance") is a nonprofit organization that provides hope and support to individuals affected by head and neck cancer; raises awareness about prevention and early detection; and advocates for improved patient outcomes.

What it reported doing in 2025

Patient Support and Financial Assistance: The Head and Neck Cancer Alliance provided direct financial assistance to head and neck cancer patients to offset costs associated with treatment, including transportation and other unmet needs. The Alliance's full-time Patient Navigator continued to serve as a primary point of contact for patients and caregivers, connecting individuals to financial assistance, peer mentorship, clinical resources, and other Alliance programs. The Alliance responded to patient calls and emails from individuals across dozens of states and countries.Ambassador Program: The Alliance's Ambassador Program a peer-to-peer education and outreach initiative continued to grow, with more than 70 Ambassadors nationally representing survivors, patients, and caregivers impacted by head and neck cancer. Ambassadors participated in community education events, media outreach, and awareness activities at the local and national level. In 2025, the Alliance advanced program development, including Ambassador training, web presence enhancements, and expansion efforts to increase geographic and demographic diversity.Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Month: In April 2025, the Alliance hosted its annual Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Month in partnership with clinicians, hospitals, and community organizations nationwide. More than 100 free screening events took place across the country throughout the month and year, identifying suspicious lesions referred for follow-up and delivering educational information about the signs, symptoms, and risk factors of head and neck cancer to thousands of individuals.HNC Survivorship Symposium and Webinars: The Alliance held its annual HNC Survivorship Symposium at UCLA, bringing together patients, caregivers, and clinicians for in-person and virtual education on survivorship topics. The Alliance also continued its webinar series, providing online educational programming to registrants nationwide.Peer Mentorship and Online Community: The Alliance's peer mentorship program facilitated connections between newly diagnosed patients and experienced survivors. The online HNC Forum served as a year-round community resource for patients and caregivers seeking information and peer support.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 97% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 94% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 52
  • Transparency & Controls: 85
  • Accountability: 95
  • Sustainability: 67
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 46.2%; rating input score 46
  • Program expense ratio: 64.7%; rating input score 65
  • Fundraising efficiency: $13.71 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 25th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 88
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 31.4%; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.66; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 39.6%; rating input score 4; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.5% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 13.8% per year; rating input score 100; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 17.2% per year; rating input score 100; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 46.2% of revenue deployed · 64.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 20 of 20 board members independent · 7 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $646K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $165K · 25 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 29 of 30 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 11 filing years from 2014 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 46/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 45/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Other executive compensation review process not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 4/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 57/100.