Ending Financial Discrimination Against Cancer Survivors

August 29, 2025 · CARA MARSHALL

Professor Mark Lawler, Co-lead of the eHealth Hub for Cancer and Professor of Digital Health at Queen’s University Belfast, has been shortlisted for a prestigious Irish Healthcare Award in the Cross Border Initiative/International Collaboration of the Year category. The recognition comes for his study Ending Financial Discrimination Against Cancer Survivors.

Published in The Lancet Oncology in 2024, the study exposed the widespread financial discrimination faced by cancer survivors across Europe. Despite being medically cancer-free, survivors were still penalised with life insurance premiums up to 400% higher than average and were often denied access to mortgages.

Professor Lawler, alongside international experts and patient advocates, brought these findings directly to policymakers at Stormont’s All-Party Group on Cancer. “It is unacceptable that cancer patients, once cured, were penalised for a previous diagnosis. They should not have had to endure this financial discrimination,” said Professor Lawler. “Our evidence of financial toxicity for cancer survivors is undeniable. This was not just about insurance premiums; it was about giving people the chance to move forward with their lives. The success of Right to be Forgotten legislation in other European countries showed that there was a better way forward.”

The research called for the urgent introduction of Right to be Forgotten legislation in Ireland, following the example of countries such as France. This legal protection ensures that a past cancer diagnosis cannot be used against survivors once a defined period, typically five years, has passed. Working with the Irish Cancer Society and other key stakeholders, Professor Lawler has also been helping to identify the most effective route for advancing this legislation in the Republic of Ireland.

This study reflects a core mission of the eHealth Hub for Cancer: tackling health inequalities and providing evidence-based solutions that can deliver real policy change and improve the lives of patients.