People in rural, remote areas sometimes refuse treatment because of cost burden on family
Sean Bujitas’s 63-year-old father, George, died a decade after being diagnosed with a rare blood cancer.
“In the last months of my father’s life, he started saying things like ‘your mother will be better off when I’m gone,’” said Bujitas, noting that before the 2000 diagnosis, his parents finally paid off the mortgage on their home and amassed $60,000 in savings.
“They lost it all during the months my father underwent treatment at Vancouver General Hospital. They were paying for hotels every night and all of their meals.”
The B.C. government announced this week its plan to spend $20 million to help with the travel costs of cancer patients and caregivers in rural and remote areas of the province who must travel for life-saving treatment.
The Canadian Cancer Society and Hope Air will each receive $10 million to nearly double the expansion of their existing programming by Oct. 3.
B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix delivered the news Wednesday.
“By providing grant funding to these two incredible charitable organizations, we are helping patients focus on receiving their cancer treatment,” said Dix, making mention of the province’s six total cancer centres and 41 community oncology network sites.
For those travelling to treatment by land, the Canadian Cancer Society will provide travel grants to more patients, and free accommodation and meals at four lodges close to cancer centres in Victoria, Vancouver, Kelowna and Prince George.
Hope Air will be adding 2,500 free flights to patients and their caregivers who are travelling to cancer centres in the next three years, as well as covering the cost of additional overnight accommodations and meals.
Dix says the spending is part of the province’s 10-year, $440-million plan to meet the needs of a growing and aging population by expanding cancer care.
“The financial burden of cancer is especially felt by those who live further away from a cancer centre and must travel by land, sea, or air to receive treatment.”
Bujitas, who is the mayor of Terrace, was glad to hear that help is coming for families like his. He said some of his city’s residents who face cancer diagnoses have refused treatment due to the stress of associated travel costs.
“There needs to be support so that aging patients like my father don’t have to feel like a burden to their families,” Bujitas said. “Everybody in the province should be able to access the same level of treatment no matter where they live.”
Only two days left to complete the survey, your voice matters! We have had an outstanding response to our Gap Analysis Survey which seeks the voices of rural residents throughout BC. This important survey has garnered over 600 responses and remains open until the 29th of September, your voice counts and if you have already completed this survey, thank you and please ask others to do so. Click here to learn more and complete the survey.
