Cancer costs patients £570 a month on average

On average, cancer costs people £570 a month, new research shows.

Macmillan Cancer Support found that four out of five people living with cancer pay out the sum in order to travel to hospital appointments as well as loss of earnings.

Two in three patients questioned said they pay around £170 travelling to and from hospital plus a further £37 a month in parking charges.

A third also said that their fuel bills have increased by an average of £24 a month, while 30 per cent said they are losing around £860 each month in income.

Ciaran Devane, chief executive of the charity, said: "This new research shows that cancer comes with a whopping price tag for many patients.

"Combined with the current recession and with welfare cuts, the cost of the disease is hitting the most vulnerable hardest."

He added that this is a growing problem because the number of people living in the UK with cancer is likely to double by 2030.

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