Cancer patients forced to rely on charity to pay bills
9:50am Wednesday 8th February 2012 in News
FREEZING cancer patients who can’t afford to heat their homes due to rising fuel bills are increasingly relying on charity handouts to keep warm.
Macmillan Cancer Support has given more than £14,900 in financial grants to 78 cancer patients in Wiltshire to help with their energy bills in the past year – a more than 35 per cent increase on the amount given in the previous 12 months.
Across the UK, Macmillan is giving out almost twice as much in grants to help patients heat their homes than it was five years ago.
Sarah Beaven, cancer information and support specialist for the region said: “To feel too scared to put the heating on because of soaring energy bills is an unacceptable reality for thousands of vulnerable cancer patients who feel the cold more and spend long periods of time at home.
“When the charity was established 100 years ago, founder Douglas Macmillan helped cancer patients by handing out sacks of coal to keep them warm.
“It is shocking that a century on, people who are diagnosed with this devastating disease are still relying on charity help to heat their freezing homes.”
When someone is diagnosed with cancer, their income often drops because they are too ill to work.
Seven in ten people under the age of 55 experience a reduced income losing on average 50 per cent.
However, their bills often rise because they need to spend more time at home and feel the chill more because of their treatment.
Despite the impact fuel poverty has on cancer patients, few patients benefit from Government and energy companies’ schemes. Macmillan is calling for the ongoing Independent Fuel Poverty Review to prioritise cancer patients for help and for more to be done to ensure cancer patients are lifted out of fuel poverty.
You can visit www.macmillan.org.uk to find out whether there is a Macmillan benefits advice service in your area or to make a donation to support Macmillan’s work.
If your area is not covered by a Macmillan service you can call freephone 0808 808 0000 to speak to an adviser and find out about the help available to cancer patients.
