How Much Does Lung Cancer Treatment Cost?

Lung cancer forms in the lung tissues when cells grow out of control. It causes about 25% of all cancer deaths, making it the leading cause of cancer death for people of any sex. 

In many cases, people with lung cancer don’t have any symptoms. Some people with lung cancer experience symptoms like chest pain, wheezing, unexplained weight loss, difficulty breathing or swallowing, coughing up blood, hoarseness, or a persistent cough. Sometimes, the cancer is discovered during an imaging test (such as an X-ray) for another condition. 

The cost of lung cancer treatment varies widely, depending on your insurance plan, diagnosis, and choice of treatment, among other factors. Learn more about what to expect, how much is covered, and what you might pay out of pocket.

Medical Bill Terms

When you start looking into the cost of lung cancer treatment, it can be difficult to understand the terminology on your medical bill. Here are some of the key terms you might encounter.

Premium

The premium is the amount that you pay for your insurance plan every month. If you purchase your insurance plan through your state’s insurance marketplace, you may be eligible for tax credits that can help you lower your premium.

Deductible

Your deductible is the amount that you pay for your healthcare visits before your insurer begins to cover costs. Often, insurance plans with lower premiums have higher deductibles (and vice versa).

Co-Pay

A co-pay, or co-payment, is one type of patient cost-sharing—the amount of covered health costs that you pay out of pocket. A co-payment is a fixed amount that you pay for a certain kind of service, such as outpatient visits or lab tests. 

Another form of patient cost-sharing is coinsurance. Coinsurance is the percentage of each medical bill that you pay for covered health services.

Often, insurance plans with lower premiums require higher co-payments and coinsurance payments.

Out-of-Network Costs

Out-of-network costs, including both coinsurance and co-payments, are the costs you pay for healthcare providers and services that aren’t contracted with your insurance plan. To keep costs down, it’s important to use in-network providers for your lung cancer treatments whenever possible.

Insurance Coverage

The type of insurance plan you have is one of the most important factors in determining your out-of-pocket costs for lung cancer treatment. While all nonexperimental lung cancer treatments are generally covered by insurance, you may have co-pays or associated costs. 

It’s important to know the details about your insurance plan, including what it covers, how much you pay, and in what form you pay it.

Medicare

Medicare provides insurance coverage to Americans over 65 and some people with disabilities. There are several parts to Medicare:

• Part A, which covers hospitalization
• Part B, which covers outpatient services and physician visits (and radiation therapy in the case of lung cancer)
• Part C, which covers physician, hospitalization, and outpatient services through private plans
• Part D, which covers oral medication (including some chemotherapy drugs and other common lung cancer medications)
• Medigap, a supplemental program that lowers co-pays and other forms of patient cost-sharing

People often pay higher premiums on Medicare than they might with other types of health insurance, but they pay less overall in cost-sharing expenses—especially if they have Medigap coverage.

Medicaid

Medicaid provides insurance coverage to eligible people who are pregnant or low-income, as well as people with disabilities, children, and older adults. 

What Medicaid covers for lung cancer treatment varies by state. However, most people with lung cancer will be able to get coverage for their inpatient and outpatient hospital services, lab tests, and imaging, as well as many common lung cancer medications.

Eligibility for Medicaid coverage is retroactive. This means that you may be eligible for treatment and testing you underwent during the past three months before your application was finalized. Medicaid also covers some transportation expenses, which can help if you have to visit different specialists.

Private Insurance

Private insurance plans are offered through your employer or purchased individually. Surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy are generally covered under private insurance plans, but you may have co-pays or coinsurance.

It’s important to make sure that your plan offers the protection of an out-of-pocket limit, as cancer treatments often reach the maximum quickly. 

The ACS reports that patients with private insurance plans through a large employer often pay the lowest out-of-pocket costs. Meanwhile, those with high-deductible plans through a small employer or individual marketplace plan usually have to pay more upfront.

Invisible Costs

In addition to the costs of medical care—such as blood tests, imaging tests, hospital stays, specialist referrals, clinic visits, drug costs, radiation treatments, surgical procedures, and more—there are many other possible invisible costs associated with lung cancer treatment. 

These indirect costs may include: 

• Travel, transportation, lodging, and meals
• Family and household upkeep (such as elder care, childcare, or cleaning services)
• Caregiver expenses
• Lost wages and earnings
• Counseling
• Rehabilitation expenses
• Palliative care (care intended to improve quality of life rather than cure)
• Additional therapies, such as acupuncture

Questions to Ask Before Treatment

If you have financial concerns about lung cancer treatment, talk to your oncologist or oncology nurse. They can connect you with a social worker, patient advocate, financial counselor, or case manager who can get to know your situation in-depth and help you come up with a financial plan that works for you.

Here are a few questions you can ask about your treatment costs: 

• What is the estimated cost of my treatment plan?
• Are there any other available treatments that would cost less?
• Do you offer payment plans or financial assistance?
• Under my current insurance plan, how much will I be expected to pay out of pocket?
• What will my chemotherapy drugs or other medications cost? Are there any pharmacies or patient assistance programs to help cover the cost?
• How long will I need to be hospitalized?
• Does my insurer need to preapprove any of the costs of my hospital stay?

Summary

Lung cancer treatment costs vary widely, depending on your insurance plan, supplemental coverage, duration of treatment, location, diagnosis, and choice of treatment. It’s important to know the details of your insurance plan, including your premium, deductible, cost-sharing requirements, and out-of-network costs.

Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance plans cover many of the costs associated with nonexperimental lung cancer treatment. Additional costs may include travel, transportation, counseling, lost earnings, rehabilitation, household upkeep, caregiving expenses, and more. 

If you have financial concerns about your lung cancer treatment, talk to your oncologist. They can point you toward a variety of resources, including charitable organizations, social workers, case managers, financial counselors, and patient advocates. Before starting treatment, ask questions about the estimated total cost, payment plans, and financial assistance options.

A Word From Verywell

If you’re already wrestling with the lung cancer diagnosis of yourself or a loved one, it can be difficult to think about the costs of lung cancer treatment. Talk to your doctor about meeting with a social worker or financial counselor to connect you with the resources to lower your costs as much as possible.