Are we nearly there yet?

Our research shows that parents of young cancer patients are struggling to keep a roof over their heads or heat their homes because of the huge cost of taking their child to hospital for life-saving treatment.

Sign your support to ask all party leaders to finally commit to a Young Cancer Patient Travel Fund to help families afford the cost of travelling for essential, life-saving treatment.

Join our fight for a Young Cancer Patient Travel Fund

Young cancer patients have to travel to specialist cancer centres across the UK for life saving treatment, which is often not available at their local hospital. This means families are burdened with an average round-trip of 60 miles to get to and from hospital for treatment, spending at least £180 a month on petrol when treatment is at its most intense. Other families are forced to pay out hundreds in taxi fares or public transport costs.

The length of cancer treatment for young people varies from months to over three years, which can mean hundreds of journeys back and forth to the hospital.

We don’t think this is right or fair. Now has to be the end of the road for travel costs.

Join our fight for a Young Cancer Patient Travel Fund

In 2018 CLIC Sargent called for the creation of a Young Cancer Patient Travel Fund.

Even with the support of 30,000 people and support from a cross-party group of MPs, a whole year later we are still waiting.

In the last 12 months, another 4,450 young cancer patients and their families have spent an unacceptable total of £5 million simply travelling to and from hospital for treatment.

Finn, 7, was diagnosed with leukaemia in October 2015.

The family live in Warminster, Wiltshire, but their nearest specialist treatment centre is in Southampton – 50 miles from home. Finn’s treatment lasted for over three years, finishing in January 2019. Last year the family almost lost their home after building up mortgage arrears when the financial impact of childhood cancer treatment hit them hard.

Mum Debbie said: “We wiped out our savings within the first couple of months, everything we had was gone. I had to give up work so that I could be with Finn in hospital, which meant that we lost one salary straight away. We had arrears stack up on our mortgage and in September 2018 we were hit with a court date for eviction.”

#CancerCosts

60 miles

The average distance travelled by a young cancer patient and their family to get treatment

4,450

Number of young cancer patients and their families who have travelled for treatment in the last 12 months

£5 million

Amount spent in last 12 months by young cancer patients and their families travelling for treatment

450,000

Number of miles if each of the young cancer patients we support travelled by car to one treatment appointment on the same day

£67,000

Cost if each of the young cancer patients we support travelled by car to one treatment appointment on the same day

Number of times round the world if each of the young cancer patients we support travelled by car to one treatment appointment on the same day

Our Cancer Costs campaign

Our research shows parents spend an average of £600 more per month when their child has cancer. We want to change the price tag and ease the financial burden on families.