Travel insurance for advanced prostate cancer

User

Posted 03 Jan 2021 at 16:34

Can anyone recommend a travel insurance company? I have recently been diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer and am wondering if it will be difficult to get worldwide annual travel insurance with cruise option

User

Posted 04 May 2022 at 21:07

I've got a terminal diagnosis of PCa and had no luck with AllClear. I have tried numerous places including some that had quoted me last year and now are out of play (bust?!). I phoned InsureCancer and they were sympathetic but would only insure a trip at a time, 4-5 weeks out, and following a testimonial from my oncologist. I was more ambitious than this because i want to book my trip(s), including to the USA.

The helpful person at InsureCancer suggested i try the government-sponsored site Money Helper

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/everyday-money/insurance/use-our-travel-insurance-directory

I phoned WorldWide Travel Insurance (they were at the top of the list that day) and got an ANNUAL FAMILY insurance INCLUDING USA! OK not cheap (three figures) but much much more affordable than i had feared, and it cuts out worry and hassle about insurance totally for a whole year... we can go on a booking spree. (Well, if we could afford it of course.) I was so pleased. I even phoned back the next day to double-check. The cover was possible because although the oncologist has said it is terminal she has not (yet) given me a specific 'deadline' to check out.

Another good thing about WorldWide was that their questions were fairly open and flexible - i had previously found some other companies to follow a rather extensive 'tree' of questions which sometimes did not make a lot of sense. Worldwide did it on the basis of my answers and no contact with oncologist needed.

I am very happy about this, after some disappointing insurance hunting in the past, hence the long email ....

DON'T GIVE UP!! AND GOOD LUCK

sorry for the long post.

User

Posted 13 Nov 2023 at 15:56

Just got travel insurance for a 3 week jaunt to France next summer for £285 for my wife and myself with Insurance With. They were good last year but my meds have just changed to abiraterone so I wondered how it would go. I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Advanced PC in June 2019. Hope this helps. An annual policy was £465.

Hope this helps

User

Posted 08 Feb 2022 at 22:46

Hello,

I was diagnosed with Advanced Prostate Cancer last year and I've been searching for travel insurance to cover me for our honeymoon in St Lucia in June 22 and to be perfectly honest I had nearly given up. We were considering cancelling it and going to Europe instead. The cheapest quote I'd been given was £3,500 and some quotes were £11,500. Crazy crazy quotes! I think what they are saying is that they don't want to cover you! The problem with the standard questionnaire that the insurance companies use (even those that say they specialise in cancer patients) is that they ask you standard questions about your most recent scan and we all know that if you are responding to hormone treatment, they don't give you a second scan as the PSA levels tell them what they need to know.

Anyway we've just been given a quote by Insurewith.com for annual cover at a much more acceptable price. Still much higher than it would be for those without cancer but at least affordable. You need to complete a Medical Screening form which takes a while but well worth a try. I hope you all find this useful.

Happy holidays!!!!

Edited by member 08 Feb 2022 at 22:52 | Reason: Extra info

User

Posted 04 May 2022 at 17:24

I just got annual worldwide cover for me and the missus for about £470 with ‘insurancewith’. I now have incurable PCa with many lymph nodes involved but she has no issues and she’s also 8 years younger than me. That was for the lowest level cover. I could have saved a couple of £s by getting separate cover for both of us but couldn’t be ars*d to faff about.

Phil

User

Posted 19 Oct 2023 at 18:29

Travel Insurance? The biggest Ripoff ever.😡😡😡 Why should someone on blood pressure tablets have increased premium, is it not to combat high blood pressure and prevent you becoming ill? But if you had High Blood Pressure and didn’t take tablets your premium would be even worse.🤷🏼‍♂️

And why should someone who’s HAD successful treatment for PCa still have to pay higher premiums?…after all your not doing to drop down dead on holiday from it.

Being on HT for another 18 months I am going to get a Private Blood test from time to time to make sure all is well, as I don’t want anything ELSE being added to my medical records.

User

Posted 14 Nov 2023 at 08:38

My husband was diagnosed in May 2021 with advanced PC with bone spread and after more than an hour phoning around trying to get travel insurance we finally got insurance with insurewith, we got insurance for going to America for 2 weeks costing £266 and for £295 we are going to Canada for Christmas for some reason we couldn’t get annual cover but I was more than happy just to get cover. Husband has just had a bone scan and goes for an mri this Wednesday we don’t see oncologist until the 13th of December that’s after we’ve been to America so not sure if things will change after that but for now we are going to enjoy some much needed time with our grandchildren

best wishes

Ann

User

Posted 19 Jan 2024 at 14:14

Hi all... just to share my experience with you all, I'm living with Advanced PCa, diagnosed a year ago, finished with radiotherapy and now just Enzalutamide every day.

Partner and I are planning two weeks in Spain, have heard some horror stories about the cost of travel insurance, so approached this with trepidation. The consensus above seems to be www.insurancewith.com so I've got a online quote from them - for two of us, for two weeks, with full disclosure of my status, they have charged me the grand sum of.... £89.22!! Brilliant - now booked!!

For a comparison I've also run a quote from All Clear Travel, using exactly the same parameters (a less detailed questionaire than Insurancewith) they want to charge me £1,743 for two weeks - bonkers!! Far more than RyanAir to Malaga and two weeks accommodation is costing us!

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User

Posted 03 Jan 2021 at 20:10

I’m now advanced but wasn’t when I used Boots travel three times. They were brilliant and very affordable even with cruise. Best to phone !!!

User

Posted 03 Jan 2021 at 21:49

I use Nationwide Building Society, I pay an annual premium on top of the £13 a month banking charge.

I've declined the annual premium this year on the basis that although we've got two cruises booked in July and November I'm highly sceptical either will actually sail and we'll be off to Whitby again.

User

Posted 05 Jan 2021 at 16:49

Thanks, Chris. I’m in the same position. I’ve had no problem obtaining travel insurance when my cancer was stage 2. I have yet to try and get it now it’s stage 4. That was my question, really. Is it going to be possible, and if so, which companies should I try?

User

Posted 05 Jan 2021 at 17:38

The best answer to this is to contact the companies verbally rather than online. If you phone MacMillan I’m quite sure they have a list of recommended companies. I simply haven’t looked into it yet because I have no holidays booked and also I’m on zero treatment at all so wouldn’t stand a chance in hell of anyone offering me insurance. Worth stating though that I have been T4 since the day of my surgery and have had many long cruises with no problem with cover. I think if you are on treatment and that your PSA is low or stable , then cover can be offered !

User

Posted 05 Jan 2021 at 21:17

If your cancer is not going to cause you any medical issues, you can get it specifically excluded from cover and get the normal premium. How much of a risk you consider that to be is a personal decision of course, but it's what I do myself (although my cancer is not advanced).

Best wishes,

Chris

User

Posted 28 Jan 2022 at 13:38

Any update/advice on this? I’m stage 4 with a psa of zero and still on medication.

I feel travelling without prostate cover may be best. Online looking fortune or will not cover!

User

Posted 28 Jan 2022 at 15:11

I’ve tried extensively again today with many companies. My hospital is actually giving me full CT and Bone soon so we can make decisions and I can answer the ‘ latest scan results ‘ question properly ! And if my Onco says I seem fine and all steady I may reluctantly take the decision to not mention the cancer when getting insured.

I did find a small private company called InsureCancer and a lady answered the phone. She said they insure any level but approach the Onco directly for information. Not sure what it would cost though 😆😆😆

User

Posted 28 Jan 2022 at 18:03

Been with nationwide flex plus for many years and always declared Gary’s prostate,tried this year and they asked different questions about spread and he was declined ! They will still cover everything else .

Have got 2 holidays booked from before Covid so have had to scramble around for cover . Got the week long cruise in Norway for £160 from All clear ,but the Canada tour ( not cruise) so far is £1200 but will keep looking .

Tried Boots but they are not taking on any new customers.

If anyone finds a good one let me know !

Debby

User

Posted 28 Jan 2022 at 23:58

Yes Debby the question criteria has definitely changed, any spread and Nationwide won't insure us.

Got a crazy quote from another company for Lanzarote last November which cost more than the holiday so just gave up in the end and didn't cover the Big C.

User

Posted 29 Jan 2022 at 12:55

We are going to be in the same boat as we have a holiday booked in may going to Canada and then going to Spain in July, when I tried to get insurance last year no one would insure my husband as he was only diagnosed in May with advanced metastatic prostate cancer, he finished chemotherapy in October and has had scans in December and the doctor said he’s happy with the results so now it’s just hormone injections every 28days and psa tests every 3 months not sure how much of a difference this will make.

Ann x

User

Posted 02 Feb 2022 at 20:37

I have advanced prostate cancer diagnosed in March 2020. I am going to the Canaries in March 22 and have just got travel insurance including cancer cover from MIA for the second time. They would not give me annual cover just the single trip. I was refused travel insurance every time I applied online so it is definitely in your interest to phone and speak to someone.

User

Posted 02 Feb 2022 at 22:42

Try looking at Battle Face

User

Posted 05 Feb 2022 at 11:33

We have used our Nat West accounts included insurance and always declare prostate cancer. This year the renewal came through with a tick box in the “not spread” section. My husband called and informed them he has spread to hip bone. He is on a hormone treatment “holiday” currently so was able to say he’s not currently under treatment and the annual addition was £70. We thought this veryreasonable. But it is better to call insurers to make clear rather than get a quote online.

User

Posted 08 Feb 2022 at 22:46

Hello,

Happy holidays!!!!

Edited by member 08 Feb 2022 at 22:52 | Reason: Extra info

User

Posted 09 Feb 2022 at 01:12

Yes, we are with Insurewith

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 09 Feb 2022 at 10:21

Thank you. Very good quote from them (insurewith) for a yearly policy. £452 to cover USA is ok for a 70 year old.

Only insurance company which asked the right questions! Eg what is your PSA!

User

Posted 09 Feb 2022 at 10:22

Thank you. Very good quote from them (insurewith) for a yearly policy. £452 to cover USA is ok for a 70 year old.

Only insurance company which asked the right questions! Eg what is your PSA!

User

Posted 09 Feb 2022 at 11:01

I don’t get this at all. Was on the phone to insurewith just last week and they were only interested in scan results and not psa results. I guess I may have bucked their system after 45 mins on phone. I’ll try again !!

User

Posted 16 Feb 2022 at 14:35

I have had a look at the insurewith.com website which I can only access with Firefox - Google Chrome wouldn't load the home page. On the homepage there are three options and when I click e.g. Medical Trip Insurance it takes me to AllClear Travel Insurance. I have used AllClear before but this time they quoted me about £250 for a weekend trip to Paris via Eurostar. This is probably because I am now stage 4 and have restarted Zoladex.

However, I found the company insurancewith.com and got a quote of £70 for the weekend in Paris.

Do the references in this thread to insurewith.com really mean insurancewith.com?

Tom

User

Posted 16 Feb 2022 at 17:23

Thank you for heads up with Insurancewith.com. At last a company that asks loads of relevant questions to identify risk associated with travel and quote £75 for 9 days in Spain. Compare that to the silly quotes from other companies (£1,000 - £3,000). It took me less than 10 minutes to complete the form.

User

Posted 16 Feb 2022 at 20:26

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member

Yes, we are with Insurewith

My mistake, when J was first diagnosed we were with insurewith but then Insureandgo ... looking at my paperwork, I guess that insurewith was taken over or incorporated with insureandgo?

We have just changed to Eversure; their covid cover seemed more comprehensive.

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 17 Feb 2022 at 16:57

I was recently looking for insurance and stumbled across payingtoomuch.com they were by far the cheapest. I will consider using them as reviews seem great but unfortunately my husband is under investigation again so cannot yet insure until we have a clear picture and treatment plan.

User

Posted 17 Feb 2022 at 19:01

I'm with staysure but after updating my medical details to include RT later in the summer, I was told they wouldn't cover my condition and I was welcome to try and get cover for my cancer with another company. After an online search I found a company called insure and escape (through moneysupermarket) who would do a single trip cover for between £65 - £150 depending on level of cover.

User

Posted 03 May 2022 at 19:58

Hi I am terminal but got 12 months insurance with insurancewith for £208 everything covered

User

Posted 03 May 2022 at 20:07

That’s quite a scoop Dave. I just got charged £210 via Insurancewith for a one week cruise in Norway. I have multiple bone mets and 4 enlarged lymph nodes. It’s all a gamble but at least I got cover at last

User

Posted 04 May 2022 at 08:47

Useful to learn that Chris. We're off on another cruise next week out of Rome. Insurance quote I got cost more than the cruise holiday so I've decided to wing it again and exclude cover for my PCA.

Insurance for PCA is tons harder and much more expensive to get than before Covid, it's a double whammy.

User

Posted 04 May 2022 at 17:24

Phil

User

Posted 04 May 2022 at 21:07

The helpful person at InsureCancer suggested i try the government-sponsored site Money Helper

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/everyday-money/insurance/use-our-travel-insurance-directory

I am very happy about this, after some disappointing insurance hunting in the past, hence the long email ....

DON'T GIVE UP!! AND GOOD LUCK

sorry for the long post.

User

Posted 23 Jun 2022 at 16:26

Just tried to extend insurance cover with our nationwide flex+ account for Robs cancer and they declined to cover him for ANY declared medical conditions even though they have done so quite happily since 2018. Is the £13 per month fee worth it now - perhaps not. What is questionable is why they made that decision as they know we are going to Australia where there is a reciprocal arrangement for health care - they even mention it in their policy document - go figure. Now we have to trawl through insurance companies who will cover him without asking for an exorbitant premium or make the decision not to have any cover. Going to try some of the companies you kind chaps have mentioned on here. Not so much for the duration we are there but ‘what if scenario’ if anything were to happen en route, although you have to ask yourself what can happen with his cancer on a plane trip!

Merilyn

User

Posted 23 Jun 2022 at 19:36

Some useful leads and info in this thread - suggest worth noting or bookmarking.

Barry

User

Posted 23 Jun 2022 at 21:46

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member

Not so much for the duration we are there but ‘what if scenario’ if anything were to happen en route, although you have to ask yourself what can happen with his cancer on a plane trip!

Merilyn

The risk for insurers isn't so much the flight, Merilyn - the big risk you are asking them to cover is you having to cancel before you go due to progression of the disease, change of treatment plan, etc. With advanced prostate cancer, that is a real risk and can be very expensive for the insurer. You are also asking them to cover the risk of him dying while away - as you say, there is a reciprocal agreement in place for accident and illness but not for cost of morgue, pathology, flying a body home, etc. My brother died suddenly in Greece at the age of 27 and without insurance. From memory it cost us about £10k for a Greek undertaker, post mortem, special body bag for the plane ... and the flight company & airport charge fees for getting the body through security and into the hold. Of course the chance of someone dying of PCa while on holiday is tiny but from the insurer's point of view, more likely with advanced cancer than without. The last time we took my mother-in-law to Australia the insurance cost us £4.5k which was far more than her business class seat (we had to slum it in the cheap seats 🙄) but she did have a lot of medical problems by then and we felt it was worth the cost to have peace of mind

Edited by member 23 Jun 2022 at 23:53 | Reason: typos

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 23 Jun 2022 at 23:15

Hi Lyn, having just read your reply I can now understand why they refused and the cost of premiums of those companies who will cover cancer cases.

Robs tumour has started to raise its head again so the onco is changing his meds from bicutamide to enzalutamide as his numbers are rising but are still very low having jumped from 0.12 to 0.99. They were worried about the rate of increase as every time they tested his PSA it had risen again. A recent MRI showed the tumour was moving plus another cancer was detected in one of the lymph glands in his neck, albeit very small - approx 1mm which they said they weren’t concerned about. So as things are on the move it’ll probably be wise for us to search around for cover which isn’t going to cost an arm and leg and like you say it’ll give me peace of mind even though Rob said not to bother!

User

Posted 23 Jun 2022 at 23:54

It's about weighing up the risks, isn't it. If the cost of cancellation is less than the cost of insurance, getting cover that excludes pre-existing medical conditions instead seems like a reasonable way forward.

I have noticed that Dad's insurance is getting more expensive but we have to cover him and his partner as a pair - if something happened to him, she wouldn't go on the trip by herself. When his previous partner died, he lost all the money he had paid for their cruise because they had each got their own (separate) insurance so he wasn't covered for cancelling due to her death.

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 24 Jun 2022 at 07:28

Ah, didn’t cross my mind that if we got separate insurance then we wouldn’t both be covered if one had to cancel. So on the insurance quest I’d best get a quote for both of us. The cancellation charges are quite high on the tickets so like you say I’ll have to weigh up the pros and cons if Rob thinks insurance is stupid price and goes without. Oh well another few hours in the day on lengthy phone calls.....

User

Posted 01 Aug 2022 at 22:31

Sorry. Insurancewith.

User

Posted 02 Aug 2022 at 10:54

Quick update re travel insurance. Afraid I drew a blank with majority of the many I phoned so took the option of the travel insurance with our nationwide bank account but Rob will not be covered for anything related to his cancer. However they will insure him for the ‘usual’ plus anything covid related.
Regarding his latest MRI and now being prescribed Enzal. He’s been on it three weeks now, so far so good. Very few side effects and numbers now down to 0.89 which is incredible plus he’s in a much more positive frame of mind. Tickets to Aus have been booked but one more question here please - if anyone can help - we are going for 7 weeks. Onco says no probs, they will ensure he has enough meds to last the duration. We are transiting through Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and I’m wondering if we may encounter a problem with carrying 2 months of Enzal. Has anyone had any problems carrying a large amount through customs etc?

Edited by member 02 Aug 2022 at 11:21 | Reason: Additional text

User

Posted 02 Aug 2022 at 17:03

Hi ,not sure if this helps but when we went to Japan I contacted the embassy ,we had some forms to fill in. We were told just because it’s legal here it may not be there .

Have a lovely trip

Debby

User

Posted 04 Aug 2022 at 11:21

Thanks Debby. Can I ask, were you staying in Japan or just transitting for a few hours waiting for next flight? I’ve done a bit of research on the net and see that Enzalutimide is available in Malaysia so hoping it’s not going to be a problem if we’re just changing planes as we have a 3 hour wait and staying in the airport.

Merilyn

User

Posted 04 Aug 2022 at 19:30

Hi ,yes we did stay so I would imagine it would be different.

I remember worrying for weeks before hand 😩

Hopefully you get the answers you're hoping for .

Debby

User

Posted 08 Aug 2022 at 12:22

Hi All - like many of you I too have been trying unsuccessfully for insurance, my hubby has recently been diagnosed with advanced Prostate cancer - the quotes I received were just ridiculously high to go to Europe £1700 the highest. Following advice on this page I tried insurancewith.com I phoned and spoke with a lovely lady Cathy - yes I was on the phone for a long time as they are very thorough, but hey I got affordable insurance for us both with, I mentioned the 15% discount for completing on line and she gave me that as well £124 well chuffed, I couldn’t get annual but that doesnt matter I could get affordable cover and we’ve something to look forward to after a difficult year 🥳

Edited by member 08 Aug 2022 at 12:23 | Reason: Not specified

User

Posted 08 Aug 2022 at 14:22

That’s incredible. You are very lucky to get it for that figure.

Although we were successful in getting insurance in 2019 when we last went to Australia for some reason many don’t want to know even though all that’s changed is a different form of meds. Even some cancer spots which were evident on diagnosis cannot he seen on his latest MRI but a small one was noted somewhere else. Anyway we’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not so much how he is but the fact that we will be away for 7 weeks. One company did say they would insure him but for only 31 days. So, as mentioned before, he is going with the basic insurance cover for delays, missed flight, covid etc. No cover at all for anything relating to the PC or which could be said to be linked to it.

Enjoy your holiday. Hope you have a great time.

Merilyn

User

Posted 02 Jun 2023 at 18:05

I am off to Spain next week and will be in Europe several times over the next 12 months. I was tearing my hair out trying to arrange insurance, going through loads of questions only to be informed that they could not cover me, or some ridiculous quote of £1500 (for 5 days in Spain!!). Read through this thread 15 minutes ago and saw about Direct Line - and now insured with prostate cancer not covered . £96.22 multi trip.

User

Posted 04 Jun 2023 at 12:23

I’ve got my last 2 years travel insurance through ‘insurancewith’ .
Had a bit of an issue this year as I had to renew 1 day before my consultation. It turned out my PSA has gone up to 6 and they’re changing me from Zoladex back onto Prostap which worked previously, although it did cause more mental issues.
Also stopped my Bicalutimide and started me in Dexamethasone.
So I tried to phone them, after a couple of times of waiting over 30 mins I gave up. Tried online chat, they can’t do anything in the chat 🤷🏼‍♂️. So tried email. Eventually they came back and said they will arrange a call back. Well I waited a week or so. We were going on holiday so I emailed again. They said they’d arrange a call back ……

So we ended up going on holiday anyway. Even got an email on holiday to say call them to arrange a call back. I told them I’m on holiday now and travelling and my phone didn’t work, told them I’d pay whatever extra it is, no reply.
Just got back home now so I need to email again to try to get a call back set up …

All a little bit frustrating… hopefully I won’t have to pay much more.

For info it was £490 per annum with worldwide cover.

Phil

User

Posted 19 Oct 2023 at 13:27

I'm insured with Nationwide insurance but my advanced PCA is excluded .

Just completed my annual review with them, my wife and I have both gone on 5 mg blood pressure medication in the last six months.

Anyway for the blood pressure she's covered at no charge and here's the kicker my blood pressure condition has been added to the list of not covered with my prostate cancer.

My wife said we're going to end up not being able to go on holiday anymore so I replied you may as well stick me in a rest home now.😂

User

Posted 19 Oct 2023 at 18:29

And why should someone who’s HAD successful treatment for PCa still have to pay higher premiums?…after all your not doing to drop down dead on holiday from it.

Being on HT for another 18 months I am going to get a Private Blood test from time to time to make sure all is well, as I don’t want anything ELSE being added to my medical records.

User

Posted 05 Nov 2023 at 17:35

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member

And why should someone who’s HAD successful treatment for PCa still have to pay higher premiums?…after all your not doing to drop down dead on holiday from it.

Being on HT for another 18 months I am going to get a Private Blood test from time to time to make sure all is well, as I don’t want anything ELSE being added to my medical records.

I think your thinking is the wrong way round - in my experience, having blood tests only increases the risk of identifying a problem that then has to be informed to the insurers. If you want to have affordable cover, the best thing is not to have tests!

Aside of that, I think we sometimes forget that insurance companies are not charities or community services. They are businesses; their main purpose is to pay out as little as possible. If all their data says that someone with high blood pressure is a) more likely to have a heart attack or stroke b) is more likely to be older and / or overweight c) is more at risk of other health conditions ... they are going to charge a premium to cover their risk. One of the most costly risks for a travel insurer is the cancellation of holidays due to illness, a change in circumstances, medical appointments, change of treatment plan or timetable - or due to these changes affecting someone else in the booking. My dad's partner pays nearly as high a premium as dad for their holidays & cruises - she is younger and healthy but if he takes ill or falls and has to cancel his holiday, she will also be claiming :-/ It might seem unfair but it is realistic.

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 13 Nov 2023 at 15:56

Hope this helps

User

Posted 14 Nov 2023 at 08:38

best wishes

Ann

User

Posted 14 Nov 2023 at 09:20

That’s good Ann enjoy your holiday. I have used Insurancewith for 2 years and thumbs up for them too.

Phil

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Travel insurance for advanced prostate cancer

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