Travel Insurance Questionnaires

Hello.  New to this forum and having a very frustrating time finding travel insurance, for which I don't seem to be alone having read some posts on here.

Out of the blue (ie no symptoms) I was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer in November 2021, age 64.  Was immediately started on hormone suppression injections (3-monthly) and regular blood tests have confirmed my PSA has returned to 'normal' indicating that the cancer is currently inactive (ie below 5 I believe).  My PSA has been below 1 for the past year and my last test result two weeks ago was 0.04.    I had courses of chemo and radiotherapy in 2022 but only the hormone treatment since then.  Basically, I feel fine and my Oncologist confirms I am fit to travel and being retired I understandably want to make the most of things while I can.

In short, I've been negotiating various travel insurance questionnaires and end up effectively stuck when asked about the cancer spread because they ask whether my latest scan shows the cancer to be increasing, decreasing or stable.  The problem is that I've only ever had one scan, which can only show the spread but not whether it is increasing/decreasing etc.  So I can't answer their questions.  They also ask about ongoing treatment but don't include hormone suppression thereapy so I have to answer 'Other Type of Treatment' and this seems to be a red flag to them.  I've tried to explain that prostate cancer (my type anyway) is monitored through PSA testing rather than scans and that all my tests for the past two years show that my cancer is dormant, but of course I'm only speaking to someone in a call centre and they can only work from their script.  I've tried comparison sites, StaySure, AllClear but they all seem to use the same questionnaire software so I end up with the same issues.

I surely can't be the only person in this situation so this post is to ask if anyone knows of a company that actually understands the medical issues involved. 

  • Welcome to the forum, oldbutbold.

    I'm sorry to hear about the insurance challenges you're facing.

    Given your unique medical situation, it might help to seek out specialised travel insurance providers experienced with cancer-related inquiries. You could also ask your healthcare team for advice or documentation to support your case, for instance.

    I hope other Cancer Chat members will be here shortly with better suggestions but until they do I wanted to leave you with a page from our website which talks about getting travel insurance when you have cancer.

    Keep exploring options, oldbutbold, and hopefully you'll find a suitable policy that allows you to enjoy your travels worry-free.

    All the best,

    Renata, Cancer Chat Moderator

  • Thank you for the welcome and suggestions.

    I have tried a number of companies that supposedly accept people with cancer but have found the premiums to be ridiculously high.  My first quote with one company was for just over £10,000 for worldwide annual non-USA cover!  My real issue is that the questions they asked about my condition were not really appropriate for my condition, which surprised me as prostate cancer is one of the most common forms of the disease so I find it hard to believe they've never had to quote for it before.

    However, there is good news because from other posts on here I discovered InsuranceWith and their questionaire was far more appropriate for my condition and on-going treatment and they have offered a policy covering worldwide annual cover (excluding Mexico) including cruising for £858, and could have been cheaper without some extras I chose to add myself.  While this is still somewhat expensive it is at least far more reasonable when spread across a number of trips, which I hope to be able to do in the coming year.

    Incidentally, and not really cancer-related, for anyone considering travelling without medical insurance because of the cost I'll just relate the story of a 52-year old averagely healthy friend who was on holiday in the Caribbean and suffered a brain aneurysm.  His treatment included being airlifted to USA (ker-ching!) where he was stabilised for many weeks before he was medically fit enough to be flown back to UK on a medical flight (basically a flying intensive care unit complete with specialist doctors and nurses - ker-ching!) and transferred to hospital to continue his recovery.  The good news is that he fully recovered.  The really good news is that he had travel insurance to cover the $1.8m (about £1.1m) cost of his treatment!  Just another example of how blessed we are to have the NHS in this country!