Hi ladies,
I know … Risky idea!! Has anyone travelled without cancer cover? Standard insurance only??I have the impossible dream of taking my son to Florida/Disneyland at end of May. I am on tablet chemo. I am allowed chemo break to go. I have second regional recurrence - each time one lymph node in neck. Still got neck node, but otherwise Clear scans. Classed as stable at moment.
Travel insurers say no! No cos second recurrence (insure with), no cos might need op sometime (freespirit), no cos 2 sites of spread and remote (insure pink). Everyone else- computer says no!! Last hope is insure cancer(lovely people, but not sure yet).
The thing is. I’ll probably always be on chemo and I’ve been told I have 2-3 yrs. I know my condition will get worse. But now… I am well. I have one positive neck node!! I have no cancer related pain. Just knackered! If there’s a time for an adventure and some fun iTs now! Thinking of risking travel with no cancer cover. Am I mad??
I know easier to go eurodisney, but wld be so exciting for us all to go to US !!
Gxx. ( have read through other threads for help)
Have you tried Mia Online?
Hi Gem
Yes I second trying MIA on line who insured me no problem (although that was to Tenerife). I have multiple mets to lung, liver, lymph and bones and am “mostly stable” on Tamoxifen.
Worth a try.
hi i got insured with all clear,good luck,xxx
Hi ladies,
Mia said no last year for Lanzarote!! All clear said had to refer me to underwriters and would be over 3 thousand pounds!! Thanks though!!! Gxxxx
Hi
I am planning (definitely maybe) to go to Las Vegas in June. Insure cancer said they would consider it, plus another company (soz, can’t remember - will get back to you if I do). Prices quoted were from £600-£1,000 for 8 days. The high cost is more due to the destination than the illness. I also contacted Gill Charlton at the Telegraph and she confirmed that these were the sort of costs I would be paying. She suggested two other firms which I haven’t contacted as yet: pjhayman.co.uk and world-first.co.uk.
It’s an entirely personal decision whether to travel with or without insurance. The only thing that weighs on my mind is the thought of having an non-cancer related incident and being refused treatment (or, more, having to pay huge amounts) for not declaring a pre-existing condition.
I’m not a particularly cautious person, but I think I would rather be on the safe side.
Alison
Alison,
This is so useful- thanks. I think I’ve got a chance with Insure cancer and they said about £1000, so that fits in! Just relies on my onc playing ball! If you can remember the other one please let me know. Really useful to know Telegraph lady confirmed cost. Will check out others- not done them! Hope you get to Vegas! Got married there - so much fun . So mad!!
Hi
I do think it is risky not taking out insurance to cover BC related problems when going to the States down to their huge medical costs if anything at all happened that could be put down to your BC. I would also think that the insurers, assuming you would be taking out a general travel policy, would try to pin anything onto your BC if any claim had to be made and that is to be expected if you chose not to cover it. It is really annoying that most of us secondary sufferers would never chose to travel when we are ill so never have to use the expensive policies that we have paid for. It would seem fairer to have to pay a large excess if any claim had to be made instead. I have read that there is a company that does this but can’t think of its name, it may be in the Travel Insurance thread.
I hope you do get a reasonable quote, maybe from the companies that Alison has mentioned and you do get to go on holiday. If you do manage to get a policy, can you let us know, the more companies to try the better!
Good luck
Nicky x
Thanks Nicky. I’ll be summarising for the other threads! It’s just so annoying that I can’t get cover. Wld pay up to £1000 if anyone would agree to cover me! But, if no one does … Then I might have to chance it. Don’t want to really as its such a worry, but I still want to have some fun while I can! Gx
Hi Gemdancer,
I’ve put the link below to the area of this website where travel insurance is discussed, which includes a list of travel insurers, don’t know if you’ve tried all these without success. Good luck.
Jo, Facilitator
It’s Fogg Travel that have insured me for skiing with no additional premium but a larger excess(£300) should I need treatment. I have multiple lung mets.
No idea if they do USA though.
Good luck xx
Hi Gem,
This really is a difficult situation and I know because I have been there. we booked to go to New York for 2 weeks at Easter after trying 10 insurances companies and being absolutely honest with them. The lovely lady at Colombus said ‘Look I’m gonna be honest with you. There’s no way anyone is going to nsurance with your prognosis/condition’ I never get upset but was in tears and told my husband I wasn’t taking th risk. AfterI calm down I thought life a gambling and I gonna take the risk. I’m on Xeloda oral chemo. My onocology, GP & pain consultant thought it was a great idea.
But not the insurances companies apparently some major changes last August. So in th end I reluctantly went with no insurance for bc a decision I didn’t take lightly and there’s no way I would have gone if there was a hint I would be unwell.
I’m back after a memorable holiday and probably the last one altogether with my beautiful family.
I really hope you get a company to insure you. The one with th higher excess sounds great and would take so much stress away.
whatever you decide to do have a great holiday. Good luck!
Chris x
Hi Chris, thanks for your post. I did some online forms last night and got lots more declines!!! When changed destination, got accepted. USA is clearly impossible. Seeing onc today and hoping to try for the insurecancer people. It’s so unfair all this! Would love to travel while I can. (Insure pink do an excess thing, but they turned me down! ) Glad you got to go and had a good time! Gx
Hi GD,
have you tried insure with, i went on a course on Saturday with the lady that owns this company & we discussed USA & travel cover, maybe worth an enquiry.
Sarah.xx
Hi Sarah, did try Insure With first of all, as had read good reports. Ended up in tears. Woman was quite robotic! Kept going off to ask her manager things , but wasn’t allowed to speak to manager directly as “not available”!! Said no because I had had 2 recurrences (one neck node each time) and would be high risk of another!!! Didn’t show any understanding. They made me most cross out of all of them! Thanks anyway though!!gx
How awful,I feel bad for recommending them now 
but am guessing every company does indeed have “one” although in this field you would think that everyone would be kind,polite & understanding. I hope you get something sorted.
Sarah.xx
Hi
You mentioned that you tried Insure With, have you tried
Insurancewith they are both 2 completely separate companies. I have tried Insure With and they were no
help at all, but I always use Insurancewith and recommend them a lot, I do hope
it wasn’t them that you had the bad experience with. You should try and give Insurancewith a call
on 08452307159 and ask to speak to Gill who is a supervisor and just chat
things through with her, she is really lovely, I always ask to speak to her.
I hope you get your holiday sorted.
Tess x
I’ve been living with liver & bone mets for over 8 years, and haven’t been able to get any travel insurance to visit the States either since 2008 - this has been crushing for me, as I’m American and all my family live there (I’ve lived in the UK for 40 years). I tried every firm & broker on every cancer-related list, as well as Diabetes UK (also have Type 2 diabetes) last year, with 100% refusals. So I’ve had to accept that I’ll never be able to go home again.
To see if things might have changed in 12 months, I just tried Insurancewith’s website quote system - they refused me. It’s most likely to do with the excruciatingly high cost of health care in the States, as those of us with mets are able to get cover for EU countries - MIA online’s policies provide a top-up to the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) cover available to all UK residents when travelling in an EU country. And there are a few other countries that have reciprocal health care agreements with the UK, so MIA Online can insure us to visit those places too.
Sorry I have no solutions - if anyone finds a firm that will insure us, please let me know. xx
Oh Marif, I am so sorry reading the contents of your post above. I think it is such a shame that you know you will not be able to go back to visit the States again. I have insurance for France but with exclusions for Bone Mets. But here is another avenue for you to try, I have my insurance through what is called a “Signature Account” with my Bank). I pay a small amount each month and it covers me for some insurance for small goods under a year old ( camera, laptop etc) and also includes my travel insurance. Not sure if the Travel insurance will get to you to the States but maybe your own Bank will have a similar type of account. Or maybe if it could cover you for abroad you could open a Signature account like mine. This be absolutely uselss information but you may want to investigate. If you want an information pack from my Bank I can pick up one quite easily and post it down to you. Just a thought. Val
Val I’m sure sure if same thing but my oh got bank ins but they won’t cover me only for non cancer illness esp if your on chemo it’s even harder we are to much a risk thought this info might help no harm in asking though gd luck laura