If you've searched online for private medical insurance that covers thyroid cancer then you are probably for looking for established UK based health insurance providers that will cover your thyroid cancer.
Our advice when looking for health insurance that covers thyroid cancer is to speak to a insurance broker. Health insurance is extremely complicated and if you want absolute certainty that thyroid cancer is covered you should consult with a health insurance broker who can explain which policy providers will cover this medical condition and which will exclude it.
There are many advantages to using a broker but the biggest by far is that you're using their industry experience at no cost. They are paid by the insurer (Aviva or Bupa etc) rather than you so it costs you no extra to use their brokering services.
- Do you reside in many different areas? Some will give you a lower policy premium than offers. A insurance broker will be able to advise whats best.
- Do you have a hobby that may invalidate your insurance claim? A broker will know this vital information.
- If you are a couple and one of you has claimed on your insurance policy this year would it be cheaper to separate you both onto two different insurance policies?
- You've lean't you're at risk of developing a certain medical condition and want to know which policy provider offers the biggest amount of cover for it. A broker will know this instantly saving you huge amounts of time and effort.
You can call around every medical insurance provider on the market and ask if they cover thyroid cancer, however this will be a very time consuming process. Each insurer will ask for your medical history because its not normally a simple yes or not if a medical condition is covered or not.
Its much quicker to speak to one medical insurance broker which will know which providers on the market cover thyroid cancer and under what conditions they do or don't cover it.
Thyroid Cancer Information
Thyroid cancer is a rare type of cancer that affects the thyroid gland, a small gland at the base of the neck.
The most common symptom of cancer of the thyroid is a painless lump or swelling that develops in the neck.
Other symptoms only tend to occur after the condition has reached an advanced stage, and may include:
It's important to remember that if you have a lump in your thyroid gland, it doesn't necessarily mean you have thyroid cancer. About 1 in 20 thyroid lumps are cancerous.
Read more about the symptoms of thyroid cancer
The thyroid gland consists of 2 lobes located on either side of the windpipe. Its main purpose is to release hormones (chemicals that have powerful effects on many different functions of the body).
The thyroid gland releases 3 separate hormones:
The T3 and T4 hormones help regulate the body's metabolic rate (the rate at which the various processes in the body work, such as how quickly calories are burnt).
An excess of T3 and T4 will make you feel overactive and you may lose weight. If you don't have enough of these hormones, you'll feel sluggish and you may gain weight.
Calcitonin helps control blood calcium levels. Calcium is a mineral that performs a number of important functions, such as building strong bones.
Calcitonin isn't essential for maintaining good health because your body also has other ways of controlling calcium.
There are 4 main types of thyroid cancer. They are:
Papillary and follicular carcinomas are sometimes known as differentiated thyroid cancers, and they're often treated in the same way.
Thyroid cancer is a rare form of cancer, accounting for less than 1% of all cancer cases in the UK. Each year, around 2,700 people are diagnosed with thyroid cancer in the UK.
It's most common in people aged 35 to 39 years and in those aged 70 years or over.