Why there is no single "price" for cancer treatment
Before any number means anything, it helps to understand why prices vary so much. Cancer treatment is rarely one event. A typical course can combine several of the following, each with its own cost: diagnostics (biopsy, pathology, CT/MRI/PET scans, blood and genetic tests), surgery, chemotherapy over several cycles, radiotherapy over many sessions, targeted or immunotherapy drugs (which can be the single most expensive item), hospital and intensive-care stays, supportive medicines, and follow-up scans and reviews for months or years.
Because of this, two people with "the same cancer" can pay very different amounts depending on the stage, the exact tumour type, whether surgery alone is enough or drugs are needed, and how their disease responds. This is also why a flat "package price" online should make you cautious: a real plan can only be costed after a specialist has seen your records. Anyone quoting a precise total before reviewing your diagnosis is guessing — or marketing.
Sourced reference figures: what systems and payers actually spend
Below are verified, public figures from national health systems, payers and the OECD. Read them as a frame of reference, not as a quote for you. Crucially, these are system and payer costs — what a health service or insurer pays — not a patient's out-of-pocket bill, and not a BergemHealth price. They exist to help you judge whether a quote you receive elsewhere is plausible.
| Reference point | Figure | What it represents | Source type |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK (NHS) cancer care, first year | ≈ £5,000–£17,000 | NHS cost of treating a cancer in the first 12 months, varying widely by type | NHS / payer cost |
| Germany — radical prostatectomy (prostate cancer surgery) | ≈ €18,500 | Reimbursed inpatient cost of one defined surgical procedure | German payer / DRG |
| Türkiye — lung cancer (payer cost) | ≈ €8,800–€10,200 | Payer-side cost of a lung-cancer treatment course | Türkiye payer data |
| Health spend per person, per year (OECD) | $2,309 vs $9,365 | Total healthcare spend per capita — a proxy for the overall cost level of a system | OECD |
The pattern these figures hint at is the one most patients have heard: Germany sits at the high end of price and cost level, Türkiye markedly lower, with the per-capita OECD gap ($2,309 vs $9,365) reflecting how different the underlying cost base of each system is. But notice the limits: a single German procedure code (≈€18,500) is not comparable to a "first-year" NHS figure (£5–17k) or to a single Türkiye treatment course (€8.8–10.2k). They measure different things. Do not add them up or treat them as your bill. They simply show the order of magnitude and the direction of travel.
Germany vs Türkiye vs the UK private route
Germany is widely regarded for advanced oncology, research access and equipment, and the reference figures place it at the higher end of cost. For some rare or complex cases, that expertise is the deciding factor — and worth it.
Türkiye offers internationally accredited hospitals (look for JCI accreditation) and experienced, often professor-led teams at a substantially lower cost base, as the payer figures above suggest. For many common cancers, the difference is largely the price of the system around the care, not the standard of the medicine, provided you choose an accredited centre and a senior specialist.
The UK private route is the option many British patients consider to avoid waiting lists or to access a specific drug. Private UK oncology is typically priced well above the NHS payer figures shown above, because you are paying private-facility and consultant rates rather than the NHS's internal cost. It keeps you close to home, which has real value, but it is rarely the cheapest path.
We will not publish a "BergemHealth price table" here, and you should be wary of anyone who does. We have no contractual right to quote a hospital's price as if it were ours, and a credible figure for your case can only come from a specialist who has read your records. What we can promise is the structure: you pay the hospital directly, at the hospital's own price, with no markup added by us.
What actually drives your final cost
When you ask for a quote, expect the total to be shaped by:
- Exact diagnosis and stage — the single biggest driver; early-stage surgery costs far less than advanced disease needing multiple drug lines.
- Treatment mix — surgery alone, or surgery plus chemotherapy, radiotherapy, targeted therapy or immunotherapy.
- Drugs — modern targeted and immunotherapy agents can dominate the bill and vary by country and availability.
- Length of hospital and ICU stay, and any complications.
- Diagnostics and follow-up — scans, pathology, genetic testing, and months of monitoring.
- Practical costs — interpreter, accommodation for a companion, and travel.
A trustworthy quote is itemised and states clearly what is and is not included. If a number arrives with no breakdown, ask for one before you commit.
Honesty about palliative and advanced-stage care
Not every search for cancer treatment abroad is about a cure, and we will never pretend otherwise. For advanced or metastatic disease, the most truthful and humane answer is sometimes that travelling for aggressive treatment will not help — and may cost a family a great deal of money and precious time for little or no benefit. Palliative care, which focuses on controlling symptoms and protecting quality of life, can be the right and dignified choice.
Whatever stage you are at — including palliative care — BergemHealth gives an honest second opinion and points you toward appropriate support. We never pressure you, and we never sell hope we cannot justify. If a senior specialist's view is that you should stay home and focus on comfort, that is what we will tell you.
How to get a real number — and why our help is free
The reliable way to learn what your treatment would cost is a personalised review: a specialist reads your diagnosis, pathology and scans, confirms (or revises) the plan, and the hospital issues a written, itemised estimate. That is a quote you can trust, because it is based on your actual case rather than an average.
Here is exactly how BergemHealth works, so there are no surprises. We are not an aggregator reselling care at a margin. We contract directly with department-head professors at JCI-accredited hospitals in Türkiye. You pay the hospital directly, at the hospital's own price — there is no markup from us, and the help we give you (reviewing your records, arranging a consultation, a second opinion and the logistics) is free to you. Our service is paid by the hospital, not by you. To begin, gather your records — recent scans and reports, pathology/biopsy results, a medicines list and a summary from your current doctors — and request a free consultation. You will get an honest opinion and a real, itemised estimate, not a glossy package number.