Treatment Cost Scariest Part for Cancer Patients
By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
The majority of people suffering from cancer fear the financial burden of costly treatment more than the possibility of death, a survey showed Tuesday.
According to the National Cancer Center's research on 1,040 adults aged between 20 and 69, 68 percent said that the most terrifying part of finding out that they or their family members had cancer was the cost of treatment.
The fear of dying, whether they could get enough treatment and information about their disease, and the possibility of losing their jobs followed far behind.
The disease has dark connotations for most people. About 70 percent linked the disease to ``death'' or ``insecurity.'' They called for the government to push regular check up programs, adopt systems to lessen treatment fees and campaign more about the disease itself for prevention.
Despite the national medical insurance system, cancer treatment costs are high. Chemotherapy and surgery often require tens of millions of won per patient, resulting in an annual cost of up to 20 trillion won to the nation.
The number of cancer patients is estimated at about 700,000 and every year 110,000 people are newly diagnosed with the disease.
However, experts say a large portion of cancer treatment costs could be covered by the national insurance system. For instance, up to 3 million won could be covered by the national medical insurance schemes for stomach, cervical, breast and several other cancers, Kim Yong-hee, the cancer center spokesman said.