Breast cancer could make you go broke

Treatment for early-stage breast cancer is more effective and precise than ever — if you can afford it.

Researchers at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center have found that 38 percent of breast-cancer patients are worried about finances — and they feel doctors are not helping.

“We have made a lot of progress in breast cancer treatment . . . but this study shows we are only part of the way to our goal,” lead study author Reshma Jagsi says in a statement. “We must now turn our efforts to confronting the financial devastation many patients face.”

Researchers surveyed 2,500 patients treated for early-stage breast cancer, as well as 845 treating surgeons, medical oncologists and radiation oncologists. The results are published in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

The study shows that the financial strain of breast cancer can be dire. Fourteen percent of women surveyed reported losing more than 10 percent of their household income. That’s partly because insurance doesn’t cover enough of the costs: 17 percent of patients spent more than 10 percent of their household income on out-of-pocket medical expenses related to treatment.

Researchers also found that African-Americans and Latinas had the most financial concerns, including losing their homes, having their utilities shut off and cutting back on food because of treatment expenses.

Worse, patients felt that they couldn’t turn to their doctor or medical provider for help. Of those reporting financial stress, 73 percent claimed they didn’t receive any help from their doctor’s office.

Researchers hope the study urges doctors to communicate more openly with patients about the financial burden of treatment and seek ways to help make care affordable.

“To cure a patient’s disease at the cost of financial ruin falls short of our duty as physicians to serve,” Jagsi says. “It’s simply not acceptable to ignore patients’ financial distress any longer.”