Although healthcare in Australia is largely publicly funded, there are out-of-pocket costs associated with diagnosis, treatment and survival. In Australia, people with cancer report relatively high out-of-pocket health costs and a heavy burden of out-of-pocket costs relative to income. These costs include travel, hospital stays, specialist fees, parking, treatment prescriptions and over-the-counter medications for supportive care. The financial impacts of the disease extend to reduced or lost employment, early retirement and reduced incomes. This presentation will review the published Australian literature regarding the types of out-of-pocket costs people experience, the unequal distribution of those costs and the impacts which extend to carers and families. Preliminary data on financial burden from a new study of people seeking help will also be presented.