Travel insurance for Europe whilst receiving immunotherapy treatment

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Hi

Just wondering if anyone can recommend a good travel insurer so my husband and I can have a holiday in the Greek Islands whilst he is receiving immunotherapy treatment for secondary renal cell carcinoma in his lungs, lymph nodes and pancreas. He had a radical left nephrectomy in 2014 and recovered well with no following treatment. Five years later small Mets appeared and he is having Pembrolizumab infusions and oral Axitinib and is currently on his fifth cycle. A scan in January showed significant shrinkage already and he has a good prognosis. We would like to have a holiday later in the year if his oncologist considers him fit enough, but our current insurer Avanti have turned him down because he has not been ‘cured’ or been given cure as an outcome.  Immunotherapy is not a guaranteed cure, it manages the cancer through shrinkage and stops spread. 
My husband has not been ill or felt ill, and continues to work and have a social life. I would love to know if anyone has a recommendation fro experience before I begin trawling through the discussions? 
‘thank you

  • Hi and welcome to the online community

    That sounds like a great holiday you have planned and I'm sorry to hear that your current insurer will no longer offer insurance. Unfortunately it can be more difficult to find reasonably priced travel insurance when you have had a cancer diagnosis.

    I can understand that you don't want to spend a lot of time trawling through the discussions so can I point you in the direction of the member's stories thread as it's where the majority of recommendations from other forum members are. Clicking on the link I've created will take you straight there if you haven't seen it yet.

    It is best to phone the insurance companies rather than try and do online quotes as sometimes they can refer to the underwriters to see if they would provide cover when an online quote might just give you a straight refusal. 

    Make sure you have all the information to hand about your husband's diagnosis and treatment before contacting the insurers. This is a list of things an insurance provider might want to know when you're applying for insurance. Some insurers might ask for a letter from your husband's doctor to prove that they have given him permission to travel.

    Please pop back and let me know how you get on

    x

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  • Oh thank you so much for your help and links, such a quick reply. I will get back to you but it may be later in the year once my husbands oncologist agrees he can travel.

    warm wishes

    Jan