Cancer patients face grave financial barriers to care

For many cancer patients, access to quality care and education is out of reach. The financial barriers—and fear of seeking help because of them—can keep people away from the care they need. One study found even after treatment, nearly 50% of cancer survivors faced medical debt associated with their care, with the vast majority unsure how they will afford future care. 

“There is this dramatic loss of income and if you are a single parent with cancer or with a child with cancer, your income is zero,” said Carla Tardif, CEO of Family Reach, at Fortune’s Brainstorm Health Conference in Marina Del Rey, Calif. last week. “Families really quickly get turned upside down.” 

Health equity is at the forefront of addressing cancer care—the second leading cause of death nationwide; One-third of cancer deaths in this country could be prevented by removing socioeconomic barriers, according to the American Association of Cancer Research. 

“Your cancer affects your finances,” Tardif said. “Your finances dramatically affect your cancer.” 

Health systems must address the historic distrust in providers, by prioritizing culturally competent care and assessing the additional barriers people face post diagnosis, she adds. Mitigating systemic barriers around housing, hunger, and trust are imperative, Tardif said, whose company Family Reach intervenes to address the social determinants of health through housing and meal service partnerships. 

“The families that come to us, they are desperate,” she said. “They are living in their car” 

Medicine has had tremendous progress in cancer research and treatment in the last few decades, but until people have access, “we aren’t winning the war against cancer,” Tardif says. 

“When you think about the hope that comes from cancer treatment, we now know the importance of research and sub-specialty care,” said Robert Stone, president and CEO of City of Hope, a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center with sites across the U.S, on the panel. “The key is making that available for the 4 out of every 5 cancer patients who can’t make their way to an NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center.” 

This means normalizing routine screening, providing comprehensive education on treatment plans and risk factors, and addressing social determinants of health disproportionately impacting minority communities.  

There is also a need to address psychological barriers delaying screenings, and therefore, cancer treatments due to stigma. Colon cancer is one prime example, said Dr. Folasade May, assistant professor of medicine at UCLA Health, on the panel. 

“We suffer because we have this disease that’s highly preventable because colonoscopies work, but there is so much stigma even about talking about it that no one wants to participate,” said May. For example, people often assume colorectal cancer is an old person’s disease, she adds. Following the death of Chadwick Boseman from colon cancer at age 43, May hopes more people feel educated on the need for preventative screening. 

The barriers to comprehensive cancer care are for reaching, but intervening at the forefront and building trust between providers and patients is the way forward, the panelists say. 

“We are here to connect the dots so that you have a financial plan, a financial care team in addition to your medical care team, and that’s how we will increase cancer survival,” Tardif said.