CANCER patients are struggling to heat their homes and face added money worries due to delays in processing a vital disability benefit, a leading charity has warned.
Research commissioned by Macmillan Cancer Support found assessment backlogs have left around 45,000 people with the disease waiting six months or more to find out if they qualify.
The study revealed the average wait was almost five months and 40 per cent of patients were unable to adequately heat their homes.
It found more than half of those questioned (56%) had increased financial worries while 51% felt the process caused extra emotional strain. As many as 2% had abandoned their application.
The charity said Waiting to Benefit exposed the "shattering" impact of problems with the introduction of Personal Independence Payments (PIP), which replaced Disability Living Allowance (DLA) last year, and were designed to help meet extra costs due to long-term health conditions.
Most people applying for PIP undergo a face-to-face assessment by private contractors.
The report prompted the charity to call for action by the UK Government to speed up the assessment process and cut waiting times to 11 weeks - the average for DLA.
The survey of 210 cancer patients found one quarter of claims - which can only be made after three months of the onset of problems with day-to-day activities - are currently stuck in the system.
Helen Thewliss, 65, of East Kilbride said she had worried about her travel costs to the Beatson clinic in Glasgow while waiting 11 months for the benefit.
She applied last July and it took 10 months before she was assessed. She was told last week her claim had been successful. Ms Thewliss said: "I'm so angry I had to wait so long. I had almost given up when I finally got an appointment for a nurse to come and see me."
Thomas Gorman, Macmillan's senior welfare right project manager, said: "These delays are a further blow to cancer patients who have to prove that they have been affected by their disease for at least three months before they can even claim this benefit."
A DWP spokesman said Macmillan's report was based on a small sample and should be treated with "extreme caution".
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