I have free annual travel insurance through Nationwide. In January I had open surgery for bowel cancer and had a left hemicolectomy. Fortunately the surgeon was able to rejoin my bowel and I didn't need a colostomy. The cancer was T3, N0, M0 so I didn't need chemo either.
I'm about 90% fit now, back to running 5k and 10k, and working with a physio on what weights I can safely lift without hernia risk. So my biggest issues are bowel habit and response to any injuries to my abdomen.
My existing insurance has agreed to cover me free but with the exclusion "bowel cancer". I'm worried that is a bit vague and they might exclude anything they feel like as being a corollary of that. Does anyone have experience of claiming with an exclusion? Is an EHIC enough for the missing bit or should I top it up?
Hi and welcome to the online community
I'm glad to hear that your surgery was successful and that you don't need chemotherapy. Unfortunately, as you have found, it can be more difficult to find travel insurance when you have had a cancer diagnosis.
When I was first diagnosed with melanoma I did go away with that excluded but I don't now. I didn't need to claim when it was excluded but I would now worry that if I did need to claim for something that I didn't think was related the insurers might claim that it was and refuse to pay out.
If you've excluded your bowel cancer from your policy would this also mean that if you had to cancel your holiday because of a recurrence would your insurer pay out?
I'm sure that you're aware that the EHIC card only covers you for travel in Europe. On the NHS website it points out that it's not a substitute for travel insurance as it doesn't cover such things as needing to be flown home and is not valid on cruises. Also, depending on when you're planning to go away, they're currently advising that if the UK leaves the EU without a deal on 31 October your access to health care may well change.
I don't know whether you've looked through the Recommended Travel Insurance thread yet as it's where we try to keep recommendations from other forum members who have obtained travel insurance. Clicking on the link I've created will take you directly to it if you haven't seen it and it might be worth your while to get a few quotes from the recommendations there.
It is best to phone the travel companies rather than try and do online quotes. Make sure you have all the information to hand about your diagnosis and treatment before contacting the insurers. This is a list of common questions that insurers might ask when you're applying for insurance.
Some insurers will ask for a letter from your doctor to prove that they have given you permission to travel. In any case it's always best to make sure that you have checked with your doctor that it's okay to travel and that this has been recorded in your notes in case of a claim.
I do hope that you can get travel insurance and that you have a great holiday.
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