I have seen lots of people quoting how much this treatment or that treatment costs, so I was wondering where you get this information? I’m not asking for any specific reason or to bang a particular drum, but I’m interested to know how much the treatment I’m having actually costs.
Thanks.
CM
If you are trying to find out what an NHS hospital charges a PCT for a particular treatment, you can make an application for information under the Freedom of Information Act. That’s how I found out what Mount Vernon charge PCT’s for a course of Cyberknife.
Obviously, if you want to know the cost of treatment in a private clinic, just ask for a quote.
Good point. I have a feeling my treatment has already or will cost more than my husband and I have ever contributed in taxes. But then it’s like car or house insurance–you hope you never have the kind of catastrophe that would mean getting back everything you would pay in over a lifetime.
Cheryl
I to CM have wondered about the cost of treatment and have noticed posts with £££, I am just curious again not as a stick to beat anyone with. Tried to google it but didn’t get anywhere. So I would be very interested to follow this thread.
Ruth
I can tell you what it costs privately - I have just totted up my insurance bills since October 09 and it comes to roughly £270,000. That includes two very expensive treatments - Avastin and Cyberknife.
finty
I asked what a WLE and SNB would be privately when I was wondering just to pay to put myself out of the misery of waiting. The answer was around £4800
I’m thinking of costs of specific drugs as well. I’ve read that Neulasta costs around £900, but where did anyone get that figure? Someone also commented that Tamoxifen costs peanuts, but again where did that information come from? And Herceptin’s supposed to be horrendously expensive, but how much and where does one look to find out?
For interest, when I was pushing for a portacath I was quoted around £2,300 for insertion of a portacath if done privately at a clinic in a famous medical street in London begining with H. As it happens I didn’t have to go that way, but if I hadn’t been able to get it on the NHS (which I did with the support of my GP) I was considering flying on easyjet to Germany to have it inserted there, as it would have been MUCH cheaper than that, even taking flights and hotel into consideration.
I don’t know where the specific amounts for drugs come from but Tamoxifen is a generic now (patent has run out and lots of people make it) so I guess that is why it is cheap compared to newer treatments which are still under the original licence… x
Here is cost of tamoxifen. Wikipedia so may be inaccurate but seems to have reference:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamoxifen
£1.90 a month
US sites have lots of info on the costs of drugs (I guess because people have private insurance and see what is charged. Neulasta says the following:
A 6mg Neulasta injection costs between 3,000 and 7000 depending on which supplier. A 300 microgram Neupogen injection between 285 and 300.
I too was curious about the cost of my treatment and found that a 1 month Zoladex injection is £84.14 and the 3 month is £267.48. I Googled “cost of zoladex” and found it.
I know about Neulasta because I had health insurance then [no longer] and the invoices were about £1000 for each of the 8 jabs.Taxotere was very expensive too[a little more than Neulasta] while fec was cheaper.These were the prices charged by Shrewsbury in 2006/7.
Love Valx
Does anyone know wht it would cost to have a CT scan - full body. I really want one of these to put my mind at rest or not as the case may be. I have mentioned it to the relevant people but I can’t get one on NHS as no nodes involved and a grade 2 they won’t give me one.Melx
Mel - I was charged £760 for my last CT scan.
finty
Beardie, do you know you get quite a big dose of radiation with CT scans? When I think of the x-rays and radio-imaging I’ve had in the last 6 months and before I even get to radiotherapy, I really don’t think I’d want any more without a really strong reason.
Chest, abdomen and pelvis CT 9.9 mSv average background exposure in the UK is 1-3 mSv per year.
Cheryl
I have had loads of CT scans, I thought a CT scan used less than others. I hate having them so in future I might ask if I need one.
Anne
Cheryl and Beardie,
Just in case you want the radiation info:
Info on radiation (from Independent newspaper a few weeks ago when concerns about Japan started)
Level 100 (mSv) is lowest annual level they think can cause increase rise in cancer rates with a 10 thought to trigger 0.4% of cancers caused by CT scans
Full body CT scan is a 10
Natural exposure in US resident annually is a 3
Spine x-ray a 1.5
Chest x-ray a 0.1
Dental x-ray a 0.01
at other end of scale is Chernobyl with 6,000 level for their workers who died within a month and 450 level for those within 15km. They think Japan per hour at the plant is 400.
Not sure what the figure for a bone scan is but I have read somewhere else that this gives you the radiation you’d normally get over 2 years - so that seems quite toxic… but maybe less than full CT scan…
But useful investigative tools … yes and then there’s any radio therapy treatments we might have had as well…
Am fascinated by the discussion on costs - thanks for sharing. I’ve had one 6 dose of Zometa and am now on Bondronet and that’s only holding some bone mets so I’m going to ask for more Zometa - I have read on forums that this is often rationed due to cost - does anyone have any figures for these treatments?
Fran
I refused a CT scan when it was offered because with annual mammos who needs yet more radiation unless there are new symptoms to investigate.At the time I could have had it done privately but I will never ever have a scan unless there is a solid reason for it.
Valxx
My local hospital charges £280 for one Zometa administration based on 4mg dose. X
Fran my hospital charges £65 for the Zometa alone, but it’s all the extra charges for having an IV that rack up the costs. But if you’re already having Herceptin (have I got that right?) then in theory, it’s just the additional cost of the drug.
fintyx