New results from a survey of nearly 1,600 cancer survivors indicate high prevalence of financial and work-related difficulties – 27 percent reported at least one financial problem (e.g., debt, bankruptcy) and 37 percent reported having to modify work plans, such as taking extended time off or delaying retirement.

Women, younger survivors, racial/ethnic minorities, and uninsured survivors were all disproportionately burdened by these challenges.

Most prior studies have focused on a small subgroup of patients with cancer or examined medical expenditures but not the actual financial burdens that survivors experience.

This study is the first to explore financial burden disparities in a large, nationally representative group of cancer survivors.

“We found that many cancer survivors, particularly those who are younger or from under-served populations, experience financial or work-related hardship – even when insured and years out from treatment,” said lead study author Robin Whitney, RN, BSN, a cancer survivor and Ph.D. student at the University of California, Davis, Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing.

“Addressing these challenges is an important aspect of providing quality cancer care, because they can substantially impact quality of life and health outcomes.”

The present analysis focused on a subset of individuals surveyed in a larger study (2011 Medical Expenditures Panel Survey Experiences with Cancer Survivorship Supplement).

Among the 1,592 survivors surveyed, 47 percent were younger than 65, 56 percent were female, 88 percent were white, and 4 percent were uninsured.

With regards to treatment status, 14 percent were in active treatment, 46 percent were less than 5 years post-treatment, and 39 percent were 5 or more years post-treatment.

Overall, 27 percent of those surveyed reported at least one financial difficulty, and 37 percent reported making at least one work modification due to cancer diagnosis.

Those in active treatment reported 120 percent more financial difficulties than survivors who were less than 5 years post-treatment.

Individuals younger than 65 reported 130 percent more financial difficulties than older survivors; those without insurance had 67 percent more difficulties compared to those with insurance; and individuals with non- white race/ethnicity had 42 percent more financial difficulties.

Women were significantly more likely than men to make at least one work modification; patients in active treatment made 120 percent more work modifications than those less than 5 years post-treatment; and non-white minorities made 57 percent more modifications than whites.

According to the authors, the findings of this study are generalisable to the US population, and point to the urgent need for screening and support for financial and work challenges across the cancer survivorship trajectory, from diagnosis to long-term survivorship.

Several US organisations, including ASCO have resources that help survivors with financial and employment concerns.

Source: ASCO