Caring for a person with cancer of the head or neck can have a major impact on finances, a new study by the National Cancer Registry of Ireland (NCRI) has found.

According to the NCRI, this is one of the most common type of cancers worldwide and it tends to be diagnosed in older people and those from poorer backgrounds.

Survivors may face a range of health issues, including disfigurement, problems with speaking and problems with swallowing.

This study focused on the financial impact on caregivers and found that this impact often begins soon after the patient's diagnosis, with carers paying for travel/commuting costs to and from hospital.

In the longer-term, some had to give up work or reduce their hours when their loved one began treatment.

The study highlighted the fact that many patients with this type of cancer cannot return to full-time work. This places further financial pressure on the caregiver, who may already have major financial expenses to worry about, such as a mortgage or children's college fees.

The researchers found that ‘finance-related psychological stress was prevalent', particularly if the caregiver hid the financial difficulties from their loved one and tried to cope with this stress on their own.

The study noted that carers did appear to be both financially and emotionally better off if their loved ones were able to access a medical card or State benefits. The carers also appeared better off if they could access a caregiver's allowance.

However, as people with cancer do not automatically receive medical cards, many caregivers pointed out that their loved ones struggled to access them. Where a loved one did obtain a medical card, the caregivers were constantly worried that it would be taken away.

Some caregivers said that they and the person they were caring for were unsure about their entitlements when it came to medical cards and social welfare.

According to the lead author of the study, Dr Myles Balfe of the NCRI and UCC, the financial strain of caring for someone with this type of cancer is ‘clear and worrying'.

"These carers, who are often older and poorer, are left struggling with the aftermaths of cancer on their families and are sometimes in very difficult financial circumstances. We need to make sure that these people are given the information that they need to claim all of the entitlements that they are due.

"We must not forget that cancer can have a huge financial impact on older people, who are often a hidden group, and that this financial impact can last for months and years after cancer treatment has finished," he said.

The study involved interviews with 31 caregivers, who had been caring for someone for an average of over five years.

Details of these findings are published in the journal, Psycho-Oncology.