Early diagnosis of “at risk” patients with cancer labor shortage

In a new report released today, the Health and Social Care Commission expressed concern about staff shortages and the negative effects of coronavirus pandemics on cancer treatment in the United Kingdom.

“There seems to be no detailed plan to address the deficiencies that threaten diagnosis, treatment and research equally.”

report

MP’s cross-party group claims a lack of “serious efforts” from the government to resolve staff shortages within these services, and the need for a detailed workforce plan to address the situation. Was emphasized again.

These concerns are based on the Commission’s findings, which began in September 2021, investigating why UK cancer outcomes lag behind many countries with comparable health care systems. increase.

According to the report, cancer survival in the UK has improved “significantly over the last half century,” but still lags behind that of other countries.

58.9% of British people diagnosed with colon cancer warned how to live for more than 5 years, compared to 66.8% in Canada and 70.8% in Australia.

On the other hand, 20.8% of people diagnosed with gastric cancer in the UK survive for more than 5 years, compared to 29.8% in Canada and 32.8% in Australia.

“For other types of cancer, such as breast cancer, the gap is narrowing, but for many other cancers, including lung, pancreatic, and liver cancer, it remains stubbornly high,” the report said. I added.

“Early cancer diagnosis is the key to improving overall survival, but progress is at stake due to staff shortages.”

Jeremy Hunt

The report claims that early diagnosis was the key to improving cancer survival.

However, after reviewing evidence from the government and the NHS, the Commission said health services are not going well to meet the ambition to see 75% of people diagnosed with cancer early by 2028. I concluded.

Concerned, more than 340,000 people would miss an early cancer diagnosis between 2019 and 2028 without progress.

The report argued that it was important to address staff gaps to improve early diagnosis.

“If we don’t address the cancer workforce gap, neither early diagnosis nor additional rapid cancer treatment is possible, and we have found little evidence of serious efforts to do this,” he said. rice field.

The Commission recognized the “important role” of cancer nurse experts and highlighted data suggesting that the UK NHS will fall below 3,371 of these nurses by 2030. This was a “100% increase” in the number of current cancer nurse specialists.

Meanwhile, medical services are also estimated to be in short supply of 189 full-time equivalent (FTE) clinical oncologists, 390 FTE consultant pathologists, and 1,939 FTE radiologists.

“There seems to be no detailed plan to address the deficiencies that threaten diagnosis, treatment and research equally,” the report emphasized.

The Commission also noted that the coronavirus pandemic had a negative impact on cancer services, with 36,000 fewer people in the UK starting cancer treatment during the pandemic compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, those who notified the investigation explained to the Commission how they had to “ratio”.

Jeremy Hunt

The effects of Covid-19 continue to be felt in cancer services, and the recent wave of Omicron infections has increased significant treatment cancellations, the report said.

This indicates that “the NHS does not yet have access to enough Covid-free therapeutic capacity to protect the treatment and address the backlog.”

“We conclude that without significant additional efforts, there is a real risk that improved cancer survival will be reversed,” he said.

This report provides a list of key recommendations for the Ministry of Health and the NHS England. This includes developing specific plans to address labor shortages between diagnostic services and short-term and long-term shortages in key professions. Among all cancer treatments. The Commission said such plans should also include the level of investment required to achieve sustainable long-term growth.

He also called for action to address the backlog caused by the pandemic. This includes analyzing the scope of the cancer backlog and estimating the additional capacity required for NHS cancer services by March 2023.

Jeremy Hunt, Chairman of the Health Insurance and Social Care Commission, said:

“We are also concerned about the negative and long-term effects of pandemics on cancer services, and there is a real risk that the improvement in cancer survival will be reversed.”

Mr Hunt reiterated that the Commission is “calling the government and the NHS to act now to address the cancer labor gap on which success depends.”

Carol Popple Stone

“So far, we have found little evidence of a serious effort to do so,” he added.

In response to this report, Carol Popplestone, a council of the Royal College of Nursing and an expert on cancer nurses, said: And care.

“Investments are essential to ensure that more nursing staff are supported to train as specialists in cancer nurses. They are the key to treatment that is available as quickly as possible.”

Meanwhile, Mines Patel, Head of Policy for McMillan Cancer Support, said:

“Before the pandemic, hard-working NHS staff had reached their limits, and cancer nurses continued to work under heavy burden on non-recoverable systems.

“This causes great anxiety for people living with cancer who do not receive the necessary coordinated quality care, face long waits for treatment, and can worsen their prognosis. . “

In response to this report, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Health pointed out the formulation of a “10-year cancer plan” aimed at “setting how to lead the world in cancer treatment.”

They claim that there is a “record number of nurses and staff working overall on the NHS” that helps reduce the backlog caused by pandemics and reduce the waiting time for cancer patients, with up to 160 regional diagnostics. He added that the centers will be located nationwide. By 2025.

A spokesperson for the NHS England said: People check their symptoms faster and try innovations like blood tests to detect more than 50 types of cancer before they appear. “

They said the cancer test referral was “a record high in the last 11 months, with more than 567,000 people starting cancer treatment since the start of the pandemic.”

They also pointed out a selective recovery plan. This shows how the government and the NHS England are aiming to tackle increasing the waiting list for selective care.

A £ 3.8 billion investment in improving treatment and diagnostic capabilities under the plan “ensures that more cancers can be detected and treated early and save more lives,” a spokeswoman said. He said he was aiming for that.