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what would be in-general cost for any clinical trial chemo take per visit ?
I'm doing this at Duke Clinic.
Will they send me the bill each week I go for chemo ?
How does this work ?
Just to have some idea and have some set-of-mind
Clinical trial participation costs would probably be the same as not participating in a clinical trial. The only thing that is not usually charged to you and your insurance company is the cost of the experimental drug. Other charges are the doctor visit, blood tests and scans that the you or your insurance pays for and are not free because your are on a clinical trial---this information will all be included in the consent form you sign. Usually there are blood tests and scans required prior to enrolling onto a clinical trial to check to see if you are eligible for the study. What study are they planning to put you on?
I am confused about your diagnosis. Reading your past posts I understand that you have had ascites fluid and paracentesis done for this. Do you have a diagnosis? Usually a biopsy is done on tissue to confirm what type of cancer one has. Sometimes chemotherapy is given before surgery and then more given after surgery. But the usual order that Ovarian cancer is diagnosed and treated is : CAT Scan/PET Scan, biopsy, surgery to debulk the cancer, pathology department looks at the tissue determining what type of cancer and what stage it is, then chemotherapy is given depending on the type and stage of ovarian.
Each hospital has its own billing schedule --you will need to call Duke and ask. My hospital bills monthly.
Do you have insurance and what kind? Most medical facilities bill monthly and if you can't pay in full, they will work a payment schedule out for you. I have done this with several medical offices since even with insurance I have had bills above what I can pay. Most are very accomodating if you call and don't let things go for months unpaid with no communication. And for severe problems, I think The Cancer Action Network of ACS is helpful in directing you to resources. My mother in law contacted Astrazeneca and they paid ALL of her chemotherapy drug. She is on Medicare. These chemotherapy drugs are very expensive.
If she gets trial chemotherapy drugs, will that need to paid too ? I heard - phase III , Phase IV trial drugs are free.....
I have Blue Cross / Blue Shield insurance.....self insurnace
It also depends upon the state in which you are receiving treatment. Some states require insurance to cover the routine costs of trials (blood draws, etc.) but other states don't. You can check out www.ovariancancer.org/states to look this information up.
Have you called your insurance company to ask what they will cover? I imagine each different policy is unique. I have BC/BS and the only thing I have had to pay is my $10 copay when I see the doctor. So far they haven't questioned a thing. But I have not been involved in a clinical trial so that might be somewhat different than standard treatment.
This is the ACS lind about insurance companies paying for clinical trials:
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ETO/content/ETO_6_2x_State_Laws_Regarding_Cli nical_Trials.asp#NC
thanks - you people are God-Send
I'll write more detail - technical once I visit my first visit at duke tomorrow
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