Poor people more likely to get late cancer diagnosis

Patients from the poorest backgrounds are around 50% more likely than the well-off to discover they have cancer after attending hospital as an emergency case.

One in seven of all cancers in Ireland is diagnosed when a patient presents as an emergency with acute symptoms, but that rate varies depending on income.

According to the National Cancer Registry, which studied trends over five years, the most deprived 20% of the population are on average 54% more likely to present as an emergency than the wealthiest 20%. Depending on the type of cancer, the difference ranged from 25%-67%.