We thank Currow and Aranda1 for raising awareness about the importance of financial toxicity in their recent article. Financial toxicity — a term increasingly used in oncology — is known to not just worsen the quality of life of people affected by cancer, but in some cases, such as bankruptcy, is associated with reduced survival.2
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- 1. Currow D, Aranda S. Financial toxicity in clinical care today: a “menu without prices”. Med J Aust 2016; 204: 397. <MJA full text>
- 2. Ramsey SD, Bansal A, Fedorenko CR. Financial insolvency as a risk factor for early mortality among patients with cancer. J Clin Oncol 2016; 34: 980-986.
- 3. de Boer AG, Taskila T, Ojajärvi A, et al. Cancer survivors and unemployment: a meta-analysis and meta-regression. JAMA 2009; 301: 753-762.
- 4. Gordon LG, Beesley VL, Lynch BM, et al. The return to work experiences of middle-aged Australian workers diagnosed with colorectal cancer: a matched cohort study. BMC Public Health 2014; 14: 963.
- 5. Carrera PM, Olver I. The financial hazard of personalized medicine and supportive care. Support Care Cancer 2015; 23: 3399-3401.
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