u/emslo

I am looking for anyone who has had or knows of similar experiences with the Compassionate Access Program at BC Cancer.

I was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2018 and have been treated for it at Victoria’s BC Cancer agency since. For the first four years, I tried different kinds of chemotherapies that did what they do: made me sick, weak, and unfortunately didn’t stop the tumour growth. In 2022, I started a new kind of immunotherapy and it miraculously worked! I am now on Keytruda, a side effect-free immunotherapy that is controlling the growth of tumours. I am 42, I work full time, you’d never know I was “sick.”

This morning I found out that my coverage for this life-saving medication has been cut off. BC Cancer’s “Compassionate Access Program” which decides such things determines that they’re not going to fund my medication anymore. To be clear, this is a regular medication that is routinely prescribed to people with over a dozen kinds of cancer, it is nothing special or particularly expensive.

The problem is that I have been living with Stage 4 cancer for too long — the protocols expect people like me to die before now. I was lucky to be among the first cohort of people on this treatment. I am now unlucky, because there is no obligation to continue providing it after two years. My oncologist is furious, and says she can’t believe they would deny me life-saving medication

So what do I do now? Go back on those toxic chemotherapies that didn’t fight the cancer and wait for death, I guess? Or maybe pay out-of-pocket, as if my family and I can afford that? We thought we lived in a country that provided universal healthcare.

If any of this sounds familiar to you, please reach out.

I am looking for anyone who has had or knows of similar experiences with the Compassionate Access Program at BC Cancer.

I was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2018 and have been treated for it at Victoria’s BC Cancer agency since. For the first four years, I tried different kinds of chemotherapies that did what they do: made me sick, weak, and unfortunately didn’t stop the tumour growth. In 2022, I started a new kind of immunotherapy and it miraculously worked! I am now on Keytruda, a side effect-free immunotherapy that is controlling the growth of tumours. I am 42, I work full time, you’d never know I was “sick.”

This morning I found out that my coverage for this life-saving medication has been cut off. The “Compassionate Access Program” which decides such things determines that BC isn’t going to fund my medication anymore. To be clear, this is a regular medication that is routinely prescribed to people with over a dozen kinds of cancer, it is nothing special or particularly expensive.

The problem is that I have been living with Stage 4 cancer for too long — the protocols expect people like me to die before now. I was lucky to be among the first cohort of people on this treatment. I am now unlucky, because there is no obligation to continue providing it after two years. My oncologist is furious, and says she can’t believe they would deny me life-saving medication

So what do I do now? Go back on those toxic chemotherapies that didn’t fight the cancer and wait for death, I guess? Or maybe pay out-of-pocket, as if my family and I can afford that? We thought we lived in a country that provided universal healthcare.

If any of this sounds familiar to you, please reach out.