The financial hardship that often accompanies a breast cancer diagnosis comes as a shock to many.
Treatments may involve additional drug costs, therapies and/or medical devices not fully covered by provincial health plans or private health care insurance.
The average length of treatment for breast cancer takes place over 38 weeks but can often last as long as a year. Sick Benefits through Employment Insurance provides benefits for only 15 weeks at a very reduced portion of salary and not everyone qualifies.
There are many different kinds of breast cancer, each with a different treatment plan. The length of time from the diagnosis to the completion of treatment varies depending on the type of breast cancer and at what stage it is diagnosed. Breast cancer diagnosed at an early stage may involve surgery (lumpectomy or mastectomy) and possibly radiation (35 treatments over six to seven weeks). A quarter of women diagnosed with a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer will receive regular injections of Herceptin for approximately 11 months after active treatment to reduce the chance of recurrence.
Treatments for later stage or aggressive forms of breast cancer may involve chemotherapy before surgery, followed by more chemotherapy and radiation after surgery and many months of traveling to and from the hospital for treatment.
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Some women who have had a mastectomy, after many months of treatment, may undergo additional surgery for breast reconstruction.
The simple truth is that being a breast cancer patient comes with many added expenses – costs that, too often, aren’t covered by government programs or employer-paid health insurance.
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Months of lost wages, coupled with the additional costs associated with treatment, leaves many patients struggling to cover the basic necessities.
We help women pay for medications, rent, groceries, utilities, wigs, prosthetics, child care - even hospital parking.
Many patients who live in rural communities have the extra burden and costs of traveling long distances to the hospital for treatment, so we help them pay for that too.
Daniela, 45
Mother and sole provider to a wonderful teenaged daughter, Daniela discovered a lump in her right breast. She was 42. After screening, biopsies and a partial mastectomy, it was determined that Daniela had a highly aggressive and uncommon form of breast cancer that accounts for only 10 – 15% of all cases.
