Cancer patients are being
failed by the NHS, a group of specialists has warned.
Reform, a think-tank of almost 1,000 doctors, says £2bn
invested in NHS cancer services in the past five years
has not provided good value for money.
Cancer care is being stifled
by overwhelming bureaucracy at the expense of front-line
services, including X-rays and radiotherapy, Reform says.
But Health Secretary John
Reid said "thousands" of patients were alive
today thanks to government investment.
'Lives lost'
Reform Director Andrew
Haldenby said a "lack of co-ordination" in health
care resulted in cancer patients living in poor health
for long periods of time.
The group says the gap
between diagnosis and treatment of cancer is growing and
costing people their lives.
"A study in Glasgow
showed a fifth of lung cancer patients became unsuitable
for treatment during their wait for radiotherapy, therefore
lives are being lost," said Mr Haldenby.
Professor Karol Sikora, co-author of Reform report Cancer
Care in the NHS, said resources were not being directed
to where they are most needed.
The public sector model
was "doomed" and more treatment should be contracted
out to external companies.
But Dr Reid said the mortality
rate from cancer had dropped by 12% in the past six years.
He said the government
had provided 1,182 extra cancer consultants, 1,100 new
pieces of equipment and 600,000 extra MRI scans.
"With 99% of people
with suspected cancer now seen by a specialist within
two weeks, we have made good progress," Dr Reid said.
Cancer Research UK head
of clinical programmes, Dr Richard Sullivan, said cancer
was "an individual disease, not like anything else".
"To get high outcomes
in terms of survival, reducing disability and quality
of life, you have to have lots of arms of healthcare services
working together," he added.
Antonia Bunnin, of the
charity Breakthrough Breast Cancer, said: "Whilst
we have seen improvements in the frontline treatment of
breast cancer since the NHS plan was introduced, patients
are still waiting far longer than they should to be diagnosed
and treated.
"Our own research
confirms that many women are literally left in the dark
over their diagnosis - with waits of up to 17 weeks.
"In addition, many
women have to wait up to 16 weeks for their radiotherapy.
"This is clearly not
good enough."
