Holiday before RT starts?

Hi Louise73 I did exactly the same before treatment.  I had a cruise booked and we got back on Sunday and I started chemo on Monday.  My oncologist insists that holidays are equally as important as treatment and will shift dates to accommodate.  When you start RT really doesn’t matter once you are on HT.

Insurance is another thing completely and I am sure others will be able to link you to this topic soon.

Hello Louise73,

I'd have thought a holiday abroad with some sun and warmth would be just the job. It'll be a great diversion too.

In terms of insurance if you already have cover you'd need to inform the insurer of any changes to health they don't know about. If not you'll need to find the cover you want at a reasonable price.

I have annual worldwide (had lung cancer 2014 - surgery & chemo, no problem since - then prostate cancer 2014 - treated, recurred 2024, treated again and now on indefinite HT - and I'm fast approaching 70). I'm with Holidaysafe for just over £450pa. for my wife and I. I sourced cover through albert & eddie, a comparison site owned by Holidaysafe's parent company which also owns Insurancewith. There are others of course. Using the comparison site gets you quotes quicker without having to re-key your info several times and if you prefer (as some do) you can 'phone the selected one to make sure you're comfortable that you've given them the correct health info..

I hope you can sort out a break soon, I' just off for 4 weeks in the sun tomorrow!

Derek.

I have to have a TURP operation before my radiotherapy starts. I am told that flights over 4 hours should be stopped at least a month before surgery, due to DVT risks. Not applicable just for RT only I guess?

Hi Louise73 , I went on a skiing holiday the week before my RT, my oncologist supported it. I was able to get insurance with the post office, I think it was £150 for the week, including the cancer cover and winter sports. Now I finished my RT, and am still on HT, I pay the same amount for the entire year rather than a week. 

I was supposed to come back from the ski trip on Sunday evening, and start RT Monday morning, my flight was cancelled due to bad weather and I ended up landing Monday morning and going directly from the airport to the hospital for my first RT treatment! So maybe have a day buffer just in case 

Go and enjoy your holiday, good luck to your husband with the treatment.

G

Don't worry about it at all provided your hubby has the agreement of the hospital team. With reference to insurance we use the Nationwide Flex Plus offering which is ideal for us holidaying with a motor caravan. There was a financial loading due to our age (74 & 75 at that time) and both of our medical situations. 

I was able to take a four week European holiday immediately before my RT with the total agreement of the oncology / RT teams. Everything worked out very smoothly. If you wish you can read a protracted and maybe boring diary of my PCa journey by clicking on my name or avatar above this entry.

Rod 

Thank you this is really helpful and good to know that you can get insurance without costing the earth!! 

Thank you for replying! Hopefully we will get away in good time! 

Thank you for your insight. I really appreciate it. 

Hello  Louise73  Before the full diagnosis and before starting HT we had two holidays in the Canaries, the extra cost on the annual policy was about £300. I paid but didn’t tell my wife it cost that much! Once I had a diagnosis but before treatment had been completed the insurers declined to cover me. Then, after RT had been completed and still on HT, I checked insurance costs again and a year’s European ‘Emerald’ cover with InsuranceWith (via Albert and Eddie) was much less than the original supplement. We took advantage of that… Not sure where you will be before RT but worth checking. Hope this helps.

Thank you. I was pleasantly surprised by the cost of the insurance and we are going away for a week :)