THURSDAY, July 9, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Financial toxicity associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has a negative impact on patients, resulting in adjustments to disease management and adjustments to financial planning, according to a study recently published in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases, the journal of the COPD Foundation.
Sonal G. Mallya, M.D., from Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, and colleagues conducted semistructured interviews with 30 purposively sampled individuals with physician-diagnosed COPD to assess financial toxicity, describing the objective burden and subjective distress resulting from medical costs.
Of the 30 participants who completed semistructured interviews, 56, 43, and 43 percent were women, non-Hispanic White, and non-Hispanic Black, respectively; 70 percent had public health insurance only. The researchers identified several themes: sources of material burden in COPD; adjustments to disease management, including nonadherence to medication or foregoing treatments; adjustments to financial planning, comprising both changes in daily spending and major financial plan disruption; emotional impact; and communication with health care providers.
"Financial toxicity is often discussed in cancer care. Our findings show it is also a significant issue for people living with COPD," Mallya said in a statement. "The financial burden can influence not only a person's finances, but also how they manage their health. Understanding how people experience these financial pressures is an important step toward developing solutions that improve both health outcomes and quality of life."
