The NHS Cancer Plan had been established in 2000, with the establishment of 34 networks for providing better treatment.
There has been a significant progress made with regard to a ten-year-old plan to scale down the number of cancer related deaths. The gap between the poor and the rich with regard to this however remains unchanged. The NHS Cancer Plan had been established in 2000, with the establishment of 34 networks for providing better treatment. As many as 33% of the population falls prey to cancer.
Improvements have been made with regard to declining death rates and easier access to drugs. This effect has is not very much visible among the poorer people, and improvements need to be made in this area. A review of the cancer plans need to be made for this, as many poor people are succumbing to the illness. The causalities due to the commonest types of cancers in the poorer areas have doubled, according to the official records of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). Cancer services are not being provided by 30% of the networks that have been established three years ago. It is also felt that as many as 17,500 deaths cancer deaths could have been avoided.The report also added that the decline in the death rates has been by 7% in the case of women, and 18% for men in the year 2002. The highest incidence of deaths have been recorded by lung cancer, as the poorer areas in the country account for higher smoking levels. The survival rates for cancer have been the highest in the Southeast and London when in comparison to other parts of the country. The diagnosis rates of the UK are reputed to be best in the Continent in spite of this.
