<prompt> Human: Four years ago after having problems with losing my voice and having to clear my throat a lot, I went to the doctor and got news out of left field. At 24 I had an aggressive throat cancer. At the time I worked at a well known financial firm as a software engineer, making about 200k per year. After the diagnosis I had surgery, then radiation, and in the last few months Ive started chemo after some new information about the tumor type appeared. I wasnt able to work much at all at that point, and despite this my employer was great for me, and they kept me on for 2 years before letting me go I wasnt working much at all, and my boss was very understanding.I had about 350k in the bank that I had been saving up to buy a house, but in the events following the diagnosis and termination from work my insurance lapsed, and because I was so out of it due to the chemo, I didnt get on new insurance. That 350k is now gone, and Im deeply in the hole and my bank will cut me off at any time they keep calling, but Im not answering because I know what will be awaiting me after the call. Im getting so many medical bills in the mail that Im not even sure who to pay at times. There is no way in hell I can get a loan now. I know I fucked up. I have no idea what to do at this point. I cant work yet because my mind is mush after the chemo, and I have no family who can help out either. Online I read about people saying others in my situation should file for bankruptcy after getting healthy again, but Im only 28 and it seems like a potential disaster for the future when the cancer comes back 90 with my type relapse in 10 years after remission.I am at a total loss, my life went from great and wealthy to poor and well.. poor. Am I completely screwed now? Any suggestions for ways to deal with this?Assistant: You are currently unemployed, are you on Medicaid? With an income of zero, you should certainly be looking into assistance programs. Try to keep up on your skills so when you can work, you are ready!And, I wouldnt be overly worried about the affect of bankruptcy in this situation. The stress of the financial stuff is certainly not going to help your health. Even if you end up living another 60 years, many people go through bankruptcy and life goes on, you deal with it and make the best.Human: Im not on Medicaid. I talked to someone while at the hospital about the financial situation and they recommended a bunch of programs, but they just reduced the costs of the bills slightly and still would have me going into extreme debt.I talked to my aunt who is in the insurance field, and she said Medicaid would be tricky for me, because in my state even with zero income I dont meet the qualifications unless I can prove I am disabled and unable to work. I am disabled in my field, the chemo has destroyed my cognative ability and memory, but Im probably capable of working in a low income job like manual labor Im not as weak as I was a year ago, so I think it might be hard to get on Medicaid.And thanks, I hope to make it another 60 years. If I didnt, I wouldnt be worried about my financial future.  <response>: Just as an aside...my sister had ovarian cancer at age 25 and the chemo had the same effect on her memory and thinking skills. Im not saying it will definitely go away, but it has been six years and shes pretty much just like she was, aside from a bit of forgetfulness that lingers she now uses a calendar to track her schedule, for example. It didnt stop her from going back to the same field she was in and doing a great job, being a mom, etc. Every chemo is different, but hopefully the worst of the side effects will fade with time! 