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CANCER PATIENTS ARE BEING FORCED TO FIGHT "TITANIC
BATTLES" FOR ESSENTIAL TREATMENTS AND SPECIALIST CARE
Cancer patients are being forced to fight "titanic battles"
for essential treatments and specialist care, The Prostate Cancer
Charity has warned.
Speaking at the National Prostate Cancer Conference in London, John
Neate, The Prostate Cancer Charity Chief Executive, said that a
"short-sighted and devalued" NHS was compromising the care of
prostate cancer patients by failing to provide them with consistent
access to specialist nurses and NICE-approved treatments.
He said: "Over recent months, we've seen many nurses losing their
jobs as a result of NHS financial deficits and it seems that the role of
the Clinical Nurse Specialist is particularly under attack. There is
mounting evidence that many are being asked to give up their specialist
roles and to work instead as more generalist nurses on wards.
"Because of their high levels of skill and experience, Clinical
Nurse Specialists are relatively expensive and an obvious target in a
financially-pressurised NHS. Their work - dealing with information,
advice and emotional support - can appear to be less tangible and a
relative 'luxury' when compared with ward-based nurses.
"But it is a short sighted and devalued NHS that fails to
appreciate the key role that Specialist Nurses play - not only in their
direct support of men and their families, but in education, in
development of clinical practice and in redesign of patient pathways
through the complexities of NHS service organisation," he added.
Mr Neate added that men with prostate cancer were also having to take on
"titanic battles" with their Primary Care Trusts to have tried
and tested treatments like brachytherapy (a type of radiotherapy) and
the chemotherapy drug, Taxotere (docetaxel), because of costs.
He said: "Whether the battle is for Taxotere or for brachytherapy
or for any other form of tried and tested treatment, it cannot be
acceptable that men and their families who are already having to deal
with the tough news of a prostate cancer diagnosis, have to wrestle with
NHS bureaucracy at the same time.
"Yes, there are cost implications and yes, I do understand the
challenges for PCTs in balancing their books and in meeting the
inexorably rising public demand for wider treatment choices. But we know
that prostate cancer is catching up from a very low base and it deserves
to be given special recognition for that in funding decisions."
Mr Neate called for a "responsive and well funded NHS" to
invest in innovation in the NHS to bring about vital and much-needed
changes in prostate cancer care and radically improve the lives of
thousands of men living with the disease.
He added: "Innovation in prostate cancer is no optional extra. No
luxury. It is essential both morally and economically and the prostate
cancer movement must drive this argument hard."
And he insisted that his criticism was not of NHS health professionals
"who bring about improvements in men's experience of prostate
cancer" but of the "financial and structural environment they
work in".
Mick Barrow, 63, a fisherman from Hastings, said: "I was devastated
to be diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer - it was a complete shock.
Fortunately I had an extremely experienced, helpful and understanding
specialist research nurse who got me and my family through that
extremely difficult time.
"I still had a lot to come to terms with and an uncertain future,
the added strain of not knowing how long my specialist nurse would be in
position to support me and then losing her because of NHS cuts and
restructuring was really hard. I am extremely lucky to have a supportive
family but a lot of fellas don't have any one who can talk these things
through with."
Rod Grant, 64, from Marlow, Buckinghamshire underwent surgery for
prostate cancer in October 2000.
He said: "Having a specialist nurse to talk to would have made a
huge difference at the time of my diagnosis. When I was told I had
prostate cancer the worst part for me was being overwhelmed by a range
of treatment options I had little understanding of. I was very lucky to
have a supportive wife to help me through my treatment decision, but it
can be a very lonely time with no simple or obvious choices and not
every man has access to such support."
Journalist Bill Elliott, 61, from Farnham, Surrey had to fight very hard
to eventually get the brachytherapy treatment his consultant had
recommended. What angers Bill so much is that the PCT refused to explain
its decision for the rationing. He said: "They didn't even have the
courtesy to write to me about why I couldn't have brachytherapy. They
told me later that they never deal directly with patients. Why not? Is
that because they want to remain unaccountable?"
Every year nearly 32,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in the
United Kingdom and 10,000 men die from it. Prostate cancer is now the
most common cancer diagnosed in men in the UK - every hour at least one
man dies from this disease.
African Caribbean men are three times more likely to be diagnosed with
prostate cancer than their white counterparts.
If you have any queries about prostate cancer call The Prostate Cancer
Charity's confidential helpline 0800 074 8383 which is staffed by
specialist nurses and open from 10am to 4pm Monday to Friday and
Wednesdays from 7 - 9pm.
If you want to make a donation to The Prostate Cancer Charity call 0208
222 7622 or visit www.prostate-cancer.org.uk
(4/11/06)
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