Critical illness insurance policies pay a benefit when the insured is diagnosed with a serious, life-altering illness or condition.
Quick Facts - The Bad and Good News of a Critical Illness
The Recovery from a CI - The Good News:
Cancer
- The overall 5 year survival rate for cancer is over 50%
- The 5 year survival rate for prostate cancer is 87%
- The 5 year survival rate for breast cancer is 82%
- The 5 year survival rate for colorectal cancer for men is 56% and 59% for women
- The 5 year survival rate for lung cancer for me is 14% and 17% for women
Cardiovascular Disease, Heart Attack and Stroke
- Over 80% of all heart attack victims survive
- 85% of all stroke victims survive
- In 1999 there were 20,258 coronary by-pass surgeries and 24,652 coronary angioplasties performed in Canada to avert a life threatening situation.
Multiple Sclerosis
- Most people that have MS are expected to live a normal or near normal life span thanks to treatment improvements
- Recent studies indicate that MS will reduce life expectancy by no more than 15% for the majority of patients
- Studies also indicate that it takes roughly 15 years from the date of onset (for the majority of MS patients) to require a cane to walk.
Critical Illness Insurance - The Power To:
- Focus on recovery - eliminate financial concerns and financial stress
- Retire early
- Seek out the best medical care anywhere is the world
- Pay for medications and professional caregivers
- Pay off debts - mortgages - business loans - shareholder buyout
- Replace lost wages of spouse
- Provide options for recovery - people with money have choices.
The Risk of a CI - The Bad News
Cancer
- An estimated 136,900 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in Canada in 2002
- 41% (1 in 2.4) men will be diagnosed with cancer over the course of their lifetime
- 38% (1 in 2.6) women will be diagnosed with cancer over the course of their lifetime
- The most common form of cancer in men is prostate, it is estimated that 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer (18,200 in 2002)
- The second and third leading cancers in men are lung cancer at 1 in 11.5 (12,000 in 2002) and colorectal cancer at 1 in 15 (9,500 in 2002)
- The most common form of cancer in women is breast, it is estimated that 1 in 9 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer (20,700 in 2002)
- The second and third leading cancers in women are lung cancer (8,800 in 2002) and colorectal cancer (8,100 in 2002)
Cardiovascular Disease, Heart Attack and Stroke
- Cardiovascular disease is a disease of the heart, the blood vessels, and arteries throughout the body and within the brain
- It is estimated that 1 in 4 Canadians has some form of cardiovascular disease that will result in coronary artery disease, heart attack or stroke
- There are roughly 75,000 heart attacks in Canada each year
- The are between 40,000 - 50,000 strokes in Canada each year.
Multiple Sclerosis
- Canada has one of the highest rates of MS in the world
- Everyday 3 more people are diagnosed with MS
- 50,000 people in Canada are suffering from MS
Critical Illness Diagnosis - The Power To:
- Immediately deliver emotional stress
- Unexpectedly deliver financial stress
- Force decisions to be made in light of current financial position
