YP Letters: Help cancer families with hospital travel costs

The month of September marks Childhood Cancer Awareness Month (CCAM) and CLIC Sargent, the UK’s leading cancer charity for children and young people and their families, is calling on Yorkshire locals to get behind our campaign to help families with travel costs to and from hospital.

The added costs of repeated hospital trips for cancer treatment drastically impacts family finances. Our research shows that on average families have to make a 60-mile round trip every time their child needs treatment, a check-up or falls ill suddenly and needs urgent care. This costs families an average of £180 a month – just in petrol costs – some families tell us they often face counting pennies to make the journey. We’re petitioning the Government to set up a Young Cancer Patients Travel Fund to ease the financial burden.

In West Yorkshire more than 200 children and young people and families are being supported by CLIC Sargent through cancer treatment. All of these are having to find extra money, on top of every day costs, to ensure their child gets to the vital treatment they need. For more information, please visit www.clicsargent.org.uk/ccam.