Travel

Travelling in the UK usually needs less planning than travelling abroad. If you have a long journey, you might want to plan rest stops to stretch your legs or take a nap.

If you’re travelling abroad there can be more to prepare for. Depending on your symptoms and blood counts, you might want to check things like:

• Any health risks where you’re planning to go, such as common infections
• Whether you’ll need to take travel medicines, like anti-malaria tablets
• Whether you’ll need travel vaccinations
• Whether the water supply is safe to drink
• How many time zones you’ll pass through
• How long the journey will be

TravelHealthPro has health information and vaccine recommendations for different countries.

Once you’ve settled on where to go, decide what sort of accommodation will work for you.

You may think about:

• What food will be on offer, particularly if you’re facing challenges eating. Some people find self-catering gives them more flexibility and assurance. Decide what will work best for you to help you eat well while you’re away.
• Whether you’re comfortable in busy places with shared facilities. Or whether you’d prefer your own space.
• Bathroom facilities, if treatment side effects mean you need to get to the loo fast. You may want to check how easy the toilets are to access.
• Whether there’s a fridge, especially if you have medicines that need to be kept cool.

Choosing when to go away and how long for can help you keep well. You may want to factor in:

• Medical appointments or blood tests. If you know when they’re due, you could time your trip around your appointments.
• Whether you’ll need travel vaccinations. You’ll need to allow enough time to organise these.
• Travelling off-peak. You may prefer this if you want to avoid large crowds to lower your infection risk.
• Taking mini-breaks or longer holidays. If you’re recovering from treatment, you may find a short holiday suits you better. While longer holidays might give you more chance to unwind.
• The usual weather at the time you’re planning to go. Consider how hot and humid or cold and wet it may be. Different weather conditions may affect your comfort and symptoms. Plus, your risk of infections or sun damage.

It’s best to have travel insurance in place as soon as you’ve booked your trip or accommodation. You may want to check what cover is available before booking your holiday.

You might want insurance for holidays in the UK in case you have to cancel for some reason. But it’s very important for holidays abroad where healthcare costs can be expensive.

It’s important to declare your diagnosis and other health conditions when you take out insurance. Otherwise, you may not be covered if you need to make a claim.

• Shop around for a good travel insurance provider. Some companies specialise in cover for people with existing conditions.
• Our partner insurance company, AllClear, covers hundreds of medical conditions, including blood cancers. Or the British Insurance Brokers’ Association has a directory of specialist providers.

If you haven’t got one already, you can order a free Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC). This lets you access state healthcare in the European Economic Area and some other countries.

You may want to check what healthcare is available, particularly if you’re going abroad. Make sure you, and the people you’re travelling with, know how to get medical help if you need it.

If you’re going abroad, check if medical help and advice is free at the point of delivery. It may be covered by the UK global health insurance card (GHIC). Or you may have to pay a fee, like a local resident would pay and claim it back later, even if you’re insured.

If healthcare is not covered by a GHIC and you do not have travel insurance, it can be very expensive.

Ask your haematology team for individual advice to help you plan.

If you’re on treatment for your blood cancer, make sure you have enough medicine for your time away. Plus, a little extra to cover delays.

Remember to include medicines you’re on for other conditions and over-the-counter medicines you usually take. And keep the packaging, as you might need this if you’re travelling by plane.

Check if there are restrictions for any of your medicines at your destination. Some medicines are illegal in other countries. Contact the embassy of your destination country to check before you book.

Find out if you need to take any travel medicines, like anti-malaria or travel sickness pills. And if it’s safe to take them with any medicines you’re on.

Find more advice on medicines from TravelHealthPro

There may be other things to consider if you have mobility issues or other additional needs.

You may need to book accessible accommodation and support while you’re travelling. TravelHealthPro has more information about travelling with a disability or additional needs.

You can often safely have several non-live travel vaccines at the same time. But you may have a weaker response to vaccines than other people if your immune system isn’t working well.

To get the best protection, you may need extra doses. Sometimes months after the first dose. Make sure you allow enough time for this before your trip.

Ask your haematology team, GP or travel pharmacist about the doses you’ll need and what to expect.

If live vaccines are unsuitable for you, explore your options. Some live travel vaccines have a non-live alternative. Find out if the non-live vaccines offer good enough protection to travel.

You might want to check the exact vaccine requirements of the country before you book.

• If live vaccines are a requirement for entry into the country: You will not be allowed in without proof of vaccination. If you’re unable to have it safely, you’ll need to choose a different holiday destination.
• If live vaccines are recommended for safe travel: You could look into why they’re recommended. Sometimes, they’re needed when travelling in certain areas of a country or at certain times of year. If you’re not planning to visit these areas or at these times, you may not need the live vaccine.

People with blood cancer often have fatigue. If you’re planning a holiday with lots of outings, remember to allow time to rest.

Try to plan any activities for times of day when you usually have more energy.

If you’re travelling by plane, jet lag can add to fatigue. You can’t always avoid jet lag, but you can sometimes ease it. The NHS has more information about managing jet lag.

Ask your haematology team if there are any activities you should avoid.

Depending on your symptoms and blood counts, there may be some activities or outings that are not suitable for you. Like activities with a risk of knocks or falls if you have low platelets, or intense exercise if you have anaemia.

Make sure you and any people you’re travelling with know how to get emergency help.

If you become ill while you’re away and need medical help, contact your nearest pharmacy, medical centre or hospital.

If you have travel insurance, contact your provider as soon as possible if you need medical attention. They may have to approve costs. You may have to pay for your healthcare and claim back later.

Try to drink six to eight cups or glasses of fluid a day to keep yourself hydrated.

If it’s hot or you’re having an active day, you might need to drink more. All sorts of fluid count toward your daily intake, including water, milk, coffee, tea and squash.

Drinking fluids at regular intervals helps you avoid dehydration.

If your pee is a clear, pale-yellow colour, it’s a good sign that you’re drinking enough.

If you’re travelling abroad, there may be more infections to consider than in the UK.

Here are some things you might consider to manage your infection risk:

• Food and drink. Try to reduce your risk of infection from food and drink and avoid a case of holiday diarrhoea. Depending on where you’re going, you might need to drink boiled or bottled water and avoid ice and salads. Remember the basics, like washing your hands or using hand sanitiser before eating or preparing food. TravelHealthPro have more food and water hygiene tips to help keep you safe.
• Insect bites and stings. Insect bites and stings can sometimes become infected. And some insects spread infections directly. Plan your outings to reduce or avoid contact with mosquitoes, ticks and other insects. Use insect repellent, and bite and sting cream, if you need it, and take a basic first aid kit. It’s useful to have plasters to cover areas where your skin becomes broken. Try to avoid scratching bites and keep them clean and dry.
• Respiratory infections. You could consider wearing a mask while travelling on trains, planes or buses, or in crowded places. And using COVID-19 tests to check for infection.
• Waterborne diseases. If you go swimming or take part in water sports, try not to swallow water. And if you think the water may have sewage or animal waste in it, don’t go in.
• Other infections. Hot and humid weather can encourage fungal infections. It’s important to keep your body clean and dry, especially your feet.

For more steps, follow TravelHealthPro’s guidance for immunosuppressed travellers. They have a medical kit checklist too.

If you think you have an infection, self-treat if you have brought suitable medicines with you. Or seek medical help straight away.

Some types of blood cancer have a higher risk of blood clots, so it’s important to take precautions.

Travelling long distance increases your chance of getting a blood clot. When this happens in your leg, it’s called deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

There is a risk of DVT with any long-distance travel, but especially if you travel by air. You can reduce the risk by:

• Walking around or standing up regularly if you can.
• Exercising your leg muscles by stretching and flexing your feet and ankles.
• Asking your doctor or haematology team about compression stockings. These are tight-fitting socks that help prevent blood clots. You can buy them from high street chemists, airports or online.

If you’re at high risk of DVT, your doctor may prescribe medicine to prevent blood clots.

Make sure you know the signs of a DVT, which include swelling and pain in your calf or thigh. You may also notice redness or darkened skin in the same area. This may be harder to see on black of brown skin.

Tell the cabin staff or seek urgent medical help if you suspect you have a DVT.

Blood cancer and its treatments may make your skin more sensitive to the sun. You may be more likely to get sunburn, sun damage and skin cancer.

Follow our sun safety tips to keep your risk as low as possible.

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