Paying for Colon and Rectal Cancer Treatment

When fighting cancer, paying for treatment is the last thing patients and families should have to worry about. But the reality is, cancer treatment is costly, even with insurance. Resources are available to help you pay for colon and rectal cancer treatment.

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Patient Assistance Programs (PAPs) help patients who have difficulty paying for colon and rectal cancer treatment.

State governments, charitable organizations, and drug companies offer PAPs that provide discounted or free medications to people who financially and medically qualify; some also help file appeals to insurance companies who deny coverage for certain medications.

Drug Company Assistance Programs for Colon and Rectal Cancer Treatment

Nearly every drug company has a PAP (mostly for the products they produce).

Paying For Treatment During Coronavirus (COVID-19)

The PAN Foundation: an independent charitable organization dedicated to helping underinsured patients access critical medical care, today announced that it will offer financial assistance to Americans with existing medical conditions who have COVID-19 or are quarantined because of the virus. The COVID-19 Treatment and Prevention Fund is currently open for applicants who have annual household incomes up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level. Eligible patients can learn more about the fund at panfoundation.org or by calling PAN at 1-866-316-7263 from Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET.

The Pfizer Patient Assistance Program has temporarily changed some elements of their program to accommodate the evolving needs of patients we serve and ensure they get access to their medicines without interruption. If you or someone you know needs help accessing a physician-prescribed Pfizer medicine, please contact Pfizer RxPathways at 1-844-989-7284.

Bristol Myers Squibb Patient Support Program is expanding its longstanding patient support programs to help eligible unemployed patients in the U.S. who have lost their health insurance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The expanded program offers access to any branded BMS medicine for free. For more information, call the BMS Contact Center’s newly created Expanded Patient Support phone number: 1-800-721-8909 or visiting BMS.com 

Merck will continue to ensure access to Merck medicines at no cost for eligible patients through its Merck Patient Assistance Program and will also be making changes to other U.S. access and assistance programs due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including a temporary $0 co-pay for certain products for eligible privately insured patients who are enrolled in the Merck Access Program. Additionally, certain refill restrictions related to coupon use may be relaxed, and all existing coupon programs remain available to privately insured eligible patients. To learn more, call 1-800-672-6372 or visit our information page on Merck.com.

Bayer Healthcare: If you or someone you know needs assistance, please contact Bayer at 1-888-842-2937 to determine eligibility for immediate free access to Bayer prescription medicines. If you or someone you know has commercial insurance requiring copay assistance, please call us at that same phone number to inquire about our $0 copay programs available for the vast majority of our products.

Paying for Biomarker Testing for Colon and Rectal Cancer

Check with your insurance company to learn which biomarker tests are covered for you. Additionally, the following resources could help you navigate the process of getting biomarker testing covered or assist directly.

Perthera: Fight CRC has partnered with Perthera to help facilitate the biomarker testing process. Perthera can help you and your doctor get your tumor tissue sample to a participating lab for testing. Learn more about this program.

Test4TRK™ program: Test4TRK is a Bayer-sponsored program offering laboratory testing for NTRK gene fusions at no cost to eligible patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) with high microsatellite instability (MSI-H). Ask your healthcare provider if you are eligible.

Compassionate Care Assistance for Colon and Rectal Cancer Treatment

Oncology Center of Excellence Project Facilitate is a single point of contact call and information center created to help oncology healthcare providers or regulatory professionals submit an Expanded Access Request (also referred to as: Compassionate Use, Emergency IND, Single-Patient IND, or Pre-Approval) for an individual patient with cancer through FDA’s Expanded Access Program.

FDA’s Expanded Access Program allows patients with life-threatening diseases or conditions such as cancer try investigational medical products (drug, biologic, or medical device) when no satisfactory therapies are available and there is no opportunity for the patient to enroll in a clinical trial.

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Nonprofit Financial Assistance Programs

This is not an all-inclusive list of manufacturing and nonprofit organizations offering financial assistance. There may be local organizations in your area that offer assistance as well. To search for more resources, visit