Total treatment cost

The total cost to cure my lymphoma was $77,633. This figure includes what was actually paid by both me and my insurance company.

To determine the actual "cost to cure" I only considered bills from the date I first went to the doctor for symptoms until the date I received my "all clear" PET scan (October 2003 through May 2004).

CategoryAmount
Chemo15,672
Radiation17,346
Diagnostic *16,097
Doctor visits4,210
Misc **580
Neupogen shots7,484
Prescriptions1,662
Surgery ***14,583
Grand total77,633

* CT/PET scans, bloodwork, pathology, x-rays, MUGA/PFT scans
** Sperm bank, dental trays
*** Biopsy, portacath insertion/removal

How much did I pay out-of-pocket?

People often ask me, "How much did you have to pay yourself?" The answer: About $1,500.

As I describe in my journal, I switched insurance companies halfway through my treatment to save money. Here is the cost breakdown by year of how much they paid and I paid:

 2003/Lumenos2004/CignaBoth years
Insurance paid36,93639,15676,092
Copays, Out-of-pocket (I paid)1,4051361,541
Total 38,341 39,292 77,633
Insurance premiums (I paid) * 110 185 295
* Not included in total since I would have had to pay this anyway for health coverage. Included for your information.

Total cost estimates

I thought it would be fun to try and guess how much everything would end up costing when everything was said and done. Below, I've recorded the estimates from anybody who sent one to me.

The person who guessed the closest was Larry W., although Eric S. and John F. were quite close too. The guesses are below; I'll let you decide who the rightful winner is :-)

The average guess was $137,599 (off by $59,966).
The lowest guess was $48,000 (off by $29,633)).
The highest guess was $300,000 (off by $222,367).

Date guessed Person Amount Off by
29 Oct 2003 Preston H. $50,000 27,633
29 Oct 2003 Aimee G. $100,000 22,367
30 Oct 2003 Suzanne T. $150,000 72,367
2 Nov 2003 Pam H. $185,000 107,367
2 Nov 2003 John H. $225,000 147,367
3 Nov 2003 Julie D. $100,000 22,367
5 Nov 2003 Laura O. $103,000 25,367
5 Nov 2003 Suzanne $90,000 12,367
6 Nov 2003 Linden C. $145,000 67,367
9 Nov 2003 Paul S. $175,000 97,367
11 Nov 2003 Wendy K. $200,000 122,367
21 Nov 2003 Zack S. $300,000 222,367
24 Nov 2003 Eric S. $80,000 2,367
1 Dec 2003 Larry W. $79,999 2,366
3 Dec 2003 Michael S. $211,375.25 133,742
4 Dec 2003 Miles P. $222,000 144,367
16 Dec 2003 Lelia B. $70,000 7,633
26 Jan 2004 Acy R. $48,000 29,633
17 Feb 2004 John F. $80,000.01 2,367