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Travel Tips for Cancer Patients
- Take out travel insurance as soon as you book your trip.
Waiting can trigger pre-existing condition clauses that can void your coverage in the event you have to cancel due to your illness. Read the policy carefully and, without disclosing why you are asking, confirm with your travel agent that pre-existing condition clauses are waived in the event you buy the policy at a certain time—often within 24 hours of booking. Also, if you can, shop around. For example, when pricing cruises through various Web-based agencies vs. Costco, we often found that Costco’s price on the trip was either the same or slightly more expensive. However, when we weighed in the cost of insurance (which Costco offered through a great company at a great price—sometimes half that of the cruise companies or travel agencies), we were often better off going with them. And you can buy insurance independently.
Sites like insuremytrip.com, for example, allow you to compare quotes from multiple major insurance companies. Once you have a ballpark idea of what the vacation is going to cost, you can go online before you even book the trip to compare pricing and rules on pre-existing conditions.
- Set realistic expectations.
If you are undergoing a regimen of heavy-duty chemo, you may need to put off that Himalayan climbing trip or 14-day/12-city European bus tour until your treatments are over. Speak with your doctor and ask what type of travel would be best for you. We found that cruising, week-long stays in a timeshare or hotel, or long weekend trips by car or plane offered opportunities to relax and sight-see at our pace.
- Try cruising.
Without sounding like a shill for the industry, after our first voyage in December 2001, we were hooked. For a cost-per-night that’s far less than most hotels, you get three great meals (and more!) a day; a variety of free entertainment at night; opportunities to see historic sights, snorkel or relax on a beach on port days; and, on days at sea, lounge by the pool or on your balcony, partake in scheduled activities, visit the gym or get a spa treatment. On days in port, most cruise companies label their excursions by level of activity. Whether we were touring cities in Italy, Greece, Turkey, Monaco and Spain on our Mediterranean cruise, visiting tropical islands or our trip to French Polynesia, or taking whale-watching, seaplane and railway trips in Alaska, we always managed to find excursions that Laura could handle. Other advantages: you only unpack once, virtually all ships have a fully equipped medical center, most lines will cater to special needs diets (just ask in advance), and, for those needing such assistance, most larger ships today are wheelchair-friendly and offer special needs cabins. To learn more about specific ships, itineraries and excursions, check out sites like cruisecritic.com. Finally, if you are concerned about getting sea-sick, request mid-ship cabins on higher levels and stick with generally calm seas like the Caribbean or Mediterranean.
- Reach out to the airlines.
If your journey involves air travel, reach out to the airline’s customer service department to see if you can book a bulkhead seat in advance. Unless you can afford first or business class, bulkhead can make a big difference in your comfort level on a long flight. Also, don’t be ashamed to ask customer service to reserve a wheelchair in the airport. This lets you conserve your strength and usually also allows you and your traveling companion to get through security quicker.
- Reach out to front desks.
If you feel that you may be a bit weak when traveling, after you’ve booked, call the front desks of hotels, timeshares or inns. Ask for a manager or innkeeper and explain your situation. As long as you make the request far enough in advance, most will do their utmost to give you a well-located room. Not once were we asked to produce a doctor’s note.
- Find a doctor who will work with you.
Fortunately for Laura, Dr. Sara actively encourages his patients to travel. Not all oncologists are of the same mindset. When selecting your physician, don’t be afraid to ask how they feel about their patients traveling. Will they work with you to schedule treatments around a trip? Will they willingly provide letters or other documentation that you may need to get injections or other minor treatments while you are away?
- Always bring a doctor’s note.
Before you leave, ask your doctor to give you a signed letter, indicating your diagnosis and any injections or other special services you might need while away in connection with your therapy. Be sure to bring any such special medications (e.g., drugs to keep your blood cell counts up) with you. A word of warning: no matter how specific your doctor’s letter may be, don’t be shocked if the physician or nurse you see while away asks you to complete a full medical history—even if you’re just getting an injection. Filling out a lengthy form is not exactly what you want to be doing while on vacation, but remember that we live in a litigious society!
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