Navigating Twin Burdens: Financial Burdens and Journey Burdens Amongst Rural-Dwelling Cancer Survivors

IntroductionFinancial toxicity (FT) is extra prevalent amongst rural-dwelling most cancers survivors who additionally face larger most cancers care-related journey burdens. We sought to look at how FT and journey burdens might pose twin burdens for most cancers survivors, and assess their results on care experiences and subsequent cost-coping methods.MethodsRapid qualitative evaluation of semi-structured interviews with rural-dwelling most cancers survivors who screened optimistic for FT per the COmprehensive Score for monetary Toxicity (COST) measure. Our evaluation was structured round three inductive themes: rural-dwelling sufferers’ experiences of most cancers therapy whereas navigating FT, affected person perceptions of journey burdens undertaken in the middle of accessing most cancers care, and perceived implications of each FT and journey burdens for care on HRQoL.OutcomesThe (n = 12) contributors in our examine had been largely girls, with a median age of 60.1. The median COST rating was 9.5, indicating a excessive diploma of FT, and the median round-trip journey distance was 25.6 miles. Participants reported cost-coping methods to scale back travel-associated prices, equivalent to “stacking” appointments to scale back journey prices and benefiting from non-medical help supplied by well being methods’ monetary help packages (e.g., gasoline playing cards). Participants additionally reported shared burdens with caregivers who additionally shouldered prices.ConclusionsEstimates of journey distances to most cancers care probably understate journey burdens, as a result of they don’t seize the frequency of appointments and their related oblique and alternative prices for most cancers survivors experiencing FT. Financial help for most cancers survivors must be attentive to the twin and cumulative monetary and journey burdens of most cancers care.