Cancer survivors have to pay 40% more out-of-pocket for medical care

Cancer survivors and those battling the disease spend nearly 40 percent more out-of-pocket on doctor appointments, drugs and other medical expenditures than people who have never been diagnosed with the disease, a new report found.

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) analysis found that younger cancer patients are facing higher bills than older ones have, suggesting that cancer care is getting more expensive. 

And those costs are taking a psychological toll on survivors, according to the new report. 

The authors urge that making health care - especially for cancer drugs - more affordable is imperative to improving the long-term survival of people who have already suffered through grueling cancer treatments. 

Americans who have survived cancer pay an average of $1,000 a year in out-of-pocket medical costs, compared to non-survivors who pay $622 a year in such bills, the CDC reports (file)

Americans who have survived cancer pay an average of $1,000 a year in out-of-pocket medical costs, compared to non-survivors who pay $622 a year in such bills, the CDC reports (file)

In 2019, 1,762,450 Americans are projected to be diagnosed with cancer. 

Death rates from the disease are declining steadily, falling by 27 percent over the last quarter century. 

But the survivors live on with the repercussions of both cancer itself and the treatments it took to beat the disease. 

That includes the financial ramifications, which are often substantial. 

Nearly 17 million people in the US are living in a post-cancer diagnosis world and coping with the aftermath. 

To work out how being a cancer survivor changes Americans' healthcare spending, the CDC, American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute examined data on over 123,000 people between 18 and 64 in the US. 

Those that had never had cancer spent an average of $622 a year of their own money on medical care. 

Cancer patients paid substantially more, averaging $1,000 a year year in out-of-pocket spending. 

Undoubtedly, that additional financial stress in part fueled their psychological distress, too. 

More than 34 percent of cancer survivors reported 'psychological hardship,' which the report attributes to concern and worry over medical bills. 

And a quarter reported actually struggling or failing to pay their medical bills. 

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