A recent Medscape article examining cancer crowdfunding highlights just how common it has become for cancer patients to seek financial help online, even if they have insurance.
Researchers identified more than 78,000 cancer-related GoFundMe campaigns launched between January 2021 and February 2023.
Most of those GoFundMe campaigns raised only a fraction of what families hoped to receive.
Rising Costs of Cancer Care – Even with Insurance
According to a 2024 American Cancer Society Action Network survey, half of people undergoing treatment reported taking on cancer medical debt, despite 98% having health insurance.
Nearly half of those with cancer cost-related medical debt owed more than $5,000.
These statistics prove that having insurance or benefits does not protect families from the financial strain of cancer treatment costs. Beyond deductibles and copays, many patients face cancer costs that insurance doesn’t cover, including travel to treatment centers, lodging, meals, parking, childcare, and lost income from time away from work:
Does Cancer Fundraising Help?
A 2022 survey of 113 cancer survivors found that 40% had used medical crowdfunding. Participants described the experience as deeply helpful, and many called cancer fundraising “a lifesaver.”
However, participants also identified cancer fundraising as emotionally difficult. Fundraising led to feeling exposed, uncomfortable, or embarrassed about publicly sharing personal details to ask for financial support through a medical fundraising campaign.
The study also found that participants recognized another challenge: fundraising success often depends on more than medical need.
Factors such as the size of a person’s social network, comfort with technology, and access to financially able supporters can all influence how much a cancer fundraising campaign raises.
You Don’t Have to Fundraise for Cancer Costs Alone
At Help Hope Live, we know how easily a medical crisis can become a financial crisis for anyone facing cancer costs.
We make community-led fundraising easy and safe. Part of our mission is to help individuals and families to fight back against the hard feelings that come with fundraising. We know that every one of these individuals facing cancer costs deserves help and hope at their time of need.
When patients feel lost, we offer step-by-step fundraising guidance and one-on-one help.
When patients feel embarrassed or uncomfortable, we remind them that they are worth it and show them how thousands of other individuals and families have moved forward and found help while feeling those same feelings.
We pair our fundraising support with other resources that can help fill the gaps and grow a stronger community. We know cancer fundraising can’t eliminate all the financial, physical, and emotional challenges an individual or family will face. However, we continue to work individually with every client for as long as they need us—backed by unique nonprofit benefits that make us a safer, stronger choice for cancer fundraising than GoFundMe
Watch Our Hope Talk
In 2021, we held a Hope Talk webinar on how cancer can lead to financial toxicity for survivors with firsthand insights from Samantha Watson, founder of The Samfund and Managing Director of:
