ONCOLOGY
Getting cancer services back on track
Healthcare leaders are calling upon Government and health providers to drastically scale-up and improve cancer services in the wake of COVID-19. This article provides an insight into some of the key recommendations for recovery.
Nearly half of people who experienced possible cancer symptoms in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic did not contact their GP, according to research carried out by Cardiff University and Cancer Research UK, published early this year. The findings focused on the experiences of 7,543 people from March to August 2020.1 Possible cancer symptoms were commonly experienced during the first wave, the survey found, with 40.1% of participants (3,025 people) saying they had experienced at least one potential symptom. Of those who experienced symptoms, a substantial proportion (44.8%) reported not contacting their GP for any symptom, even for red flags such as coughing up blood (30.7% of those who experienced this symptom did not seek help), an unexplained lump or swelling (41% did not seek help) or a change in the appearance of a mole (58.6% did not seek help). Principal investigator Professor Kate Brain, a health psychologist from Cardiff University’s School of Medicine, said people had “put their health concerns on hold to protect the NHS”.
A significant number were concerned about “wasting healthcare professionals’ time” (15.4%), others worried about putting extra strain on the NHS (12.6%) or being
seen as “someone who makes a fuss” (12%), some reported difficulty with access to healthcare services (10.3%), while around 9.6% worried about catching COVID-19. Professor Brain said: “From the early data we collected after the first lockdown we can see that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected public attitudes to seeking help for signs and symptoms of cancer which may translate into delayed referrals, missed tests
The calamitous impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on UK cancer treatment has again highlighted the urgent need for an overhaul of every aspect of our cancer services. However, these profound impacts are as much a symptom of the underlying weaknesses of cancer care as a
measure of the severity of the pandemic. Baroness Nicola Blackwood
SEPTEMBER 2021
and later-stage diagnosis. “This suggests the Government’s message to ‘stay home, protect the NHS, save lives’ which was intended to control the spread of COVID-19, also sent a strong message to the public that cancer can wait.” Worryingly, a more recent UK-wide study (carried out between August and September 2020) by Cardiff University found that more than one in five people were less likely to attend cancer screening now than before the pandemic.2
The findings included:
l 74% of respondents eligible for cervical screening said they will attend their next cervical appointment, while 84% of eligible respondents said they will participate in bowel screening;
l A substantial minority (30% of those eligible for cervical screening, and 19% of those eligible for bowel screening) said they are less likely to take part in cancer screening now than before lockdown;
l Three-quarters (75%) said they were worried about delays to cancer tests and investigations, and to screening, caused by COVID-19.
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