Irish Cancer Society: €30m needed for ‘stretched’ services

Rachel morrogh director of advocacy Irish Cancer Society, with Donal buggy director of services Irish Cancer Society.

The government must provide €30m in Budget 2021 to address a range of challenges in already “stretched” cancer services, the Irish Cancer Society has said.

In a pre-budget submission published today, the cancer charity sought “proper” funding to address the critical underfunding of services in recent years and additional challenges wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic, including growing waiting lists and reduced capacity.

While urgent care and diagnostics continued despite Covid-19, fewer patients were seen with activity levels at 70% for medical oncology, 80% for radiation oncology and 50% for cancer surgery up to June, while cancer screening programmes were paused in March leading to a backlog in referrals.

On Tuesday, chief clinical officer with the HSE Dr Colm Henry said any patient with a cancelled cancer screening referral would be seen by next spring. 

He also conceded that cancer services would be “slower” because of the impact of Covid-19 on the delivery of services.

Today the Irish Cancer Society called for €10 million to address current backlogs in cancer services and a further €20 million to “kickstart” investment in the 2017-2016 cancer strategy.

“Sadly we have had almost no money dedicated to the implementation of the National Cancer Strategy over recent years. 

"The lack of government funding has meant a lack of investment in innovation, new services and addressing unmet needs of cancer patients – instead cancer services have been stretched to the point of breaking. This needs to change,” the Society’s Director of Advocacy, Rachel Morrogh, said.

“The lack of funding for cancer has led to missed performance targets, waiting lists, unfilled posts and under-developed services. 

"These were all problems in cancer services pre-Covid-19, and the pandemic has only made things worse. 

"Continuing to demand that healthcare professionals and cancer services do more with less will ultimately impact negatively on patients,” she added.

The 32-page document calls for “temporary builds” to increase the capacity of the health service to manage the demand for Covid and non-Covid care and also recommended using private hospital capacity to clear cancer diagnostic backlogs and funding an endoscopy action plan to cut waiting lists.

The government is also being urged to fast-track Sláintecare and a commitment to provide €3 billion in “transitional funding” over the first six years of the new plan to roll out universal healthcare.

Medical cards, the charity said, should be provided to all cancer patients from diagnosis up until the end of treatment, while “life-long” medical cards should be provided to patients with a terminal diagnosis and survivors of childhood or adolescent cancer.

The Society is also seeking the abolition of prescription charges, inpatient charges, and a reduction in the drugs payment scheme threshold to €100 per month, which collectively could cost the exchequer an estimated €183 million next year.

The price of a packet of cigarettes should also increase by 80cent to bring the average price to €14.30 in 2021 and tax should also be increased on roll-your-own tobacco, the cancer charity said.

Every year more than 43,000 people are diagnosed with cancer while the disease costs over 9,000 lives annually.

Budget 2021, Ms Morrogh said, offered an “opportunity to claw back some of the ground” that had been lost due to underfunding and to deliver on targets to be in the top quarter for five-year survival rates among EU member states.

“The stark choice is that either proper funding is provided to resource the National Cancer Strategy, which would both save and improve the lives of struggling cancer patients all around the country, or the pattern of underfunding continues, and services and healthcare professionals remain overwhelmed, leading to the risk of worse outcomes for patients,” Ms Morrogh said.