Terminally-ill patients are being pushed into poverty by the cost-of-living crisis, charity bosses have warned.
End-of-life charity Marie Curie says calls to its support line from people struggling to get by have increased by more than a third since last year.
Instead of making special memories with loved ones, those with terminal illnesses are spending their final precious weeks worrying about money.
Nearly 80 per cent of callers surveyed by Marie Curie said they were concerned about whether they would be able to keep warm this winter.
And a massive 61 per cent said their family would struggle to pay its energy bills.
Among them is Stewart Batty who is having to heap blankets over his terminally-ill wife Fran to keep their heating bill down.
Their heartbreaking situation even causes arguments because Stewart, 47, wants to turn on the heating for her, but Fran, 50, doesn’t want their money spent on keeping her warm.
Bus driver Stewart, who has two children Isla, 14, and Max, 18, with Fran, said: “All that really matters now is having nice family time together.
“But it’s really hard when you’re so worried about money and how to pay the bills.
“We’ve even started having a few cross words between each other over it.
“I’ll say that I’m going to put the heating on to help her warm up and she’ll tell me not to. Things like that. It shouldn’t be like this.”
Doctors say Fran - who has already twice beaten breast cancer - is unlikely to live more than a year after bone cancer spread to her brain.
She is about to start chemotherapy to help prolong her life and has had to give up her self-employed work as a personal assistant.
Stewart has dropped his hours to help care for his wife and to be there for their kids and the family now live off his part-time wages, Universal Credit and Fran’s disability benefits.
He said: “I just want to be with my wife every second right up until the day she passes - but if we don’t get the money from my wage we’d go under.
“Sometimes I feel like I’m living a nightmare. The last thing we both need right now is having to worry about money.
“The fact that fuel, electric and everything else has gone up couldn’t have come at the worst time.
“We’ve been cutting back everywhere we can. Food we’ve cut back on. We’ve stopped buying meat.
“We were paying around £120 a month for our heating and then they said they wanted to put it up to £290 a month.
“We said that we can’t afford that - we’ll give you £170 a month and try and deal with the debit balance as we go along.”
Stewart and Fran, who rent their home in Leeds, Yorkshire, have got rid of any luxuries - including their Sky package.
Stewart said: “Things like that made life that little bit more bearable. My lad loved football and Sky Sports and that was another thing that went to save a bit of money, cutting back where you can and having less fun.
“We’ll be spending less this Christmas, cutting back and not buying as many gifts.”
Stewart is backing Marie Curie’s campaign to allow dying people of working age access to their State Pension.
He said: “It’s about making sure the kids have got what they need. It would make life that little bit more comfortable if we had that money.
“Maybe Fran would be more comfortable, and we could have little treats and make sure the kids are taken out.
“If it’s your money when you get to 67, why isn’t it your money when you’re dying at 50? I fail to see why, if you can draw your private pension early, you can’t access your state pension earlier in life.
“If you’ve contributed to the economy of the country your entire life and paid in been part of the productive era of the country, then it’s the least you deserve.”
More than 147,000 people have signed Marie Curie’’s petition, which also calls for the government to support dying parents with childcare costs and to protect the terminally-ill from soaring energy bills.
Mark Jackson, Senior Policy & Research Manager at Marie Curie, said: “We urge the government to take these measures. If they don’t, we fear many terminally ill people could freeze this winter.
“The cost-of-living crisis is pushing people affected by terminal illness to breaking point.”
A Department for Work and Pensions spokesman said: “A terminal diagnosis is an unimaginable challenge and our priority is providing people with financial support quickly and compassionately.
“Those nearing the end of their lives can get fast-track access to a range of benefits without needing a face-to-face assessment or waiting period, with the majority of individuals receiving the highest rate of those benefits.
“Earlier this year we extended that support for Employment and Support Allowance and Universal Credit and the Government has recently passed an Act which makes similar changes to Personal Independence Payment, Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance.
“These changes mean thousands more people at the end of life will be able to access these benefits earlier.”
To sign the petition, click here
The Marie Curie Information and Support Line is a free service for those affected by terminal illness and can be reached on 0800 090 2309.
