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Craig Thompson is both a patient and a medication donor at RemediChain. In fact, he’s one of the originals, having matched with a donated prescription in RemediChain’s first year. He’s also a unique example of how medication rescue can come full circle – he’s both received medication from RemediChain and donated medication to RemediChain. Read on for his story.
The Diagnosis: Prostate Cancer
Craig was diagnosed with aggressive, late-stage prostate cancer in 2012. He has private insurance, but it doesn’t cover specialty medications. It’s exactly the type of gap many insured patients struggle with.
The Treatment Gap: Insurance and Manufacturer Assistance
In 2016, Craig’s doctor prescribed hormone therapy to prevent the cancer from spreading. At the time, he qualified for a program to reduce the cost of his necessary medications to just $10 per month. But after taking a break in 2019 to try experimental radiation, he lost access to that program.
The costs he faced were astronomical – more than $2,000 per month, seemingly forever. He couldn’t afford it, at least not for long. But by not taking the drugs regularly and as prescribed, he risked the spread of his cancer, the need for even more expensive interventions, and possibly death.
The Treatment Bridge: Medication Rescue
Faced with an unaffordable but quite necessary treatment, Craig contacted RemediChain. At the time, it had been just one year since the Tennessee law changed to allow for the legal, safe rescue of unused medications to share with patients in need. Craig thought it was a shot in the dark that the fledgling program could help. But his medication was in stock. Craig got – at no cost to him – a three-month supply of the costly hormone therapy, giving him time to work through a web of access programs.
Luckily, another patient assistance program came through sooner than expected, leaving Craig with two months’ worth of unused Zytiga. That’s when he also became a donor. The unopened specialty cancer medication went right back to RemediChain to be shared with other patients in need.
The Downstream Math: Persistent Prescription Therapy Prevents Costly Disease Complications
For the last several years, Craig has continued as both donor and recipient. When his medications change, he donates what he hasn’t used. When his assistance program eligibility lapses, RemediChain helps him bridge the gap. Over the years, Craig has received or donated multiple different specialty drugs, including costly treatments for prostate cancer, like Zytiga and Nubeqa.
And the benefits extend beyond his personal health. Although Craig’s insurance doesn’t cover specialty medications, if his cancer spreads, the plan would cover additional scans, surgeries or other costly interventions – and maintaining his medications prevents that. The peace of mind and the improvement to his quality of life benefit his family, his clients and his friends. Craig’s cancer is considered managed, thanks in part to his ability to stay on his necessary medications.
Craig’s experience is a perfect example of the cycle of medication rescue.
“I don’t worry about cancer spreading or going into financial toxicity because I can’t afford the medications. I’ve gotten several calls over the years about lapses in assistance programs that would make my out-of-pocket costs thousands of dollars per month. When that happens now, I think…no it won’t. RemediChain takes that worry away.” – Craig Thompson