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December 16, 2024 | Reducing Financial Toxicity in Cancer Care: A point of view from Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center
December 16, 2024
When a patient is diagnosed with cancer, their first worry shouldn’t be: “How will I pay for my care?” But for many people, the cost of the disease and treatment are among the most pressing factors that influence care and outcomes.
Financial toxicity of cancer is a real concern that can impact health. Nearly half of people with cancer in the U.S. took on debt to pay for their care, and 45 percent of this group delayed or avoided care for serious conditions due to financial strain. The Greater Baton Rouge region has a 24 percent poverty rate and a significantly lower median income than the U.S. average, meaning people in the local area are even more susceptible to financial pressures that come with a cancer diagnosis.
Mitigating financial toxicity through the Alliance
Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center is working to make cancer care more equitable through its $2 million Alliance for Equity in Cancer Care grant. Their initiative largely focuses on the underserved area of North Baton Rouge, allowing the Cancer Center to connect more patients with services to lessen their burden, including financial concerns during treatment.
“Through the Alliance grant, we have added a team of nurse navigators, social workers, dietitians and transportation coordinators that helps seek additional resources for patients,” said Nicole Honoré, program manager for the Alliance at MBPCC.
The grant also enables the program to host community listening sessions in targeted areas of North Baton Rouge, which Honoré says is one of the most rewarding parts of her job.
Nicole Honoré, Alliance program manager, hosts listening sessions for community members
“When we go into the communities, we ask: ‘How many of you have been impacted by cancer?’ When those hands go up, it shows that cancer doesn’t discriminate,” she said.
Through eight spring community listening sessions held in 2023, more than 80 percent of attendees identified financial toxicity as a significant barrier to care. Certain communities are already disproportionately impacted by chronic illness due to factors including family history, low health literacy, lack of insurance and limited transportation resources. When these communities are faced with cancer, the financial situation becomes even more dire—and they become more vulnerable to poor outcomes.
Navigators mitigate negative outcomes by connecting families and patients with stress-reducing resources such as:
- Financial support: Navigators work with financial counselors to connect patients with funding from donors to cover costs such as medication and co-pays during treatment.
- Transportation assistance: Navigators coordinate transportation for patients and families to and from cancer treatments. In the past year, MBPCC has facilitated over $18,000 in transportation services for patients covered by the Alliance grant.
- Nutrition resources: At some Cancer Center locations, patients can access a food pantry stocked with fresh produce and healthy frozen and shelf-stable foods.
- Scheduling services: From treatment through follow-up, patients see multiple providers, sometimes at various locations. Navigators help schedule these visits to reduce travel and optimize patients’ time.
- Answers to questions: Navigators help guide patients and their family members as their lives change over the course of treatment, new medical terms are introduced and treatment progresses.
“No one should have to choose between affording cancer care and supporting their families,” said Honoré. “The funding and cancer navigation services are in place to help patients who are underserved have a chance at better outcomes from treatment.”
This article is repurposed in collaboration with Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center.