Cancer chief surprised at travelling for care issue

THE man charged with implementing the State’s cancer control programme is surprised travelling for cancer care is such a significant issue in Ireland.

Director of the National Cancer Control Programme Professor Tom Keane told the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children he would take the transport concerns on board.

Prof Keane is on leave for a two-year period from his post as provincial radiation programme leader for the British Columbia Cancer Agency in Canada. He has been charged with overseeing the National Cancer Control Programme, including the transfer of all important cancer treatment to the eight designated specialist cancer centres.

British Columbia, with a population of about four million, is similar in size to Ireland and the model of cancer care delivered in the region is internationally acknowledged as successful.

Prof Keane said he was surprised at the emphasis on travel in Ireland because it was never an issue in British Columbia where people expected to travel for the best cancer care. He said he had met with officials of the Irish Cancer Society who had emphasised the need for the provision of transport for patients.

Prof Keane said the aim of the strategy would be to reduce the incidence of cancer, reduce cancer deaths and to improve the quality of life for people living with cancer. Describing problems in the current system, he said resources were too widely spread and often duplicated. He said he wanted to reduce the time between a patient presenting with symptoms and diagnosis being made, and was concerned a patient’s medical history could not be tracked throughout the hospital system.

He was also surprised the reporting of a cancer diagnosis was not mandatory in Ireland, which should be a fundamental part of any cancer control system.

Because of the lack of information, clinicians were “flying blind” in many situations, he said. He also stressed cancer research needed to be concentrated in specialist centres to attract the best medical expertise.

Prof Keane said it was intended the initial diagnosis of cancer and surgical treatment would be delivered at one of the eight specialist cancer centres but all other treatment would be delivered within the community.

Prof Keane said he hoped to have his own team by January 1. However, he stressed he had no plans to change the decision to develop eight designated cancer treatment centres but that no service would be closed down until an alternative service was available.

“There will be no deterioration in services from what currently exists,” he told Fine Gael’s spokesman on health, Dr James O’Reilly.