The first Less Survivable Cancers Awareness Day is launched today, to highlight the importance of early diagnosis in improving survival and quality of life for people diagnosed with these diseases.
Launched by the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce (LSCT), it seeks to raise awareness about six cancers – lung, liver, brain, oesophageal, pancreatic and stomach – that have an average five-year survival rate of 16%.
These cancers, which make up nearly half of all common cancer deaths in the UK, are difficult to diagnose and screening programmes are limited or non-existent.
The taskforce says most of the general public are unaware of common symptoms and many will only be diagnosed after an emergency admission to hospital or an emergency GP referral after symptoms have become severe.
NHS data released last year showed that the proportion of less survivable cancers diagnosed in England in emergency settings, such as A&E departments, and resulting in first hospital admissions was far higher than for more survivable cancers.
While 2.7% of breast and 7.8% of prostate cancer cases were diagnosed as an emergency, this rose dramatically to 53% for pancreatic, 52.7% for Central Nervous System (including brain), 44.9% for liver, 35.3% for lung, 30.2% for stomach and 20.5% for oesophageal cancers.
The LSCT is calling for all UK governments to commit to increasing survival rates for less survivable cancers to 28% by 2029 by eliminating avoidable delays in diagnosis and proactively investing in research and treatment options.
Anna Jewell, chair of the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce said: “We know that delays in diagnosis lead to much poorer outcomes for patients with these rapidly-advancing cancers. We also know the trauma associated with receiving a diagnosis in an emergency setting for both patients and families.
“These cancers are currently difficult or impossible to treat at later stages and the time from diagnosis to death is often brutally short compared to more survivable cancers. The situation is critical and has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The Taskforce is calling for a significant increase in research funding as well as a commitment to increasing resources for early diagnosis for less survivable cancers so we can close the deadly cancer gap.”
Andrew Millar, consultant gastroenterologist and hepatologist at the North Middlesex University Hospital, said: “Late presentation is a key reason that some cancers are hard to treat. Advanced disease means there are fewer options for treatment and often results in rapid deterioration leaving families and friends bewildered and shocked. Early diagnosis is crucial if we are going to tackle this problem and fight the stark inequalities in the survival rates of different cancers.”
He called for the urgent investment in diagnostic equipment and staff, as well as better support for research into new diagnostic methods and enabling GPs to have better access to diagnostic tests.
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