Efforts to reduce cancer at risk

Efforts to reduce cancer at risk

"Without the leadership of experts we will continue to fail to reduce the gap between us and Australia, where cancer mortality rates are lower,” says Associate Professor Brian Cox, Chair of the New Zealand Cancer Control Trust, an independent advocate for cancer control.

He was responding to the Minister of Health, Jonathan Coleman’s announcement this week that Cancer Control New Zealand will be disestablished.

Cancer was the leading cause of death in New Zealand in 2010, accounting for nearly a third of all deaths, an increase of nearly 13% between 2000 and 2010. Recent research has shown that cancer survival after diagnosis in New Zealand is significantly poorer than in Australia across almost all cancers.

"The reasons for this are not known but there are indications that diagnosis may be more delayed here, possibly due to poorer access to diagnostic services. That’s why measuring results and collecting data about our interventions is so important. We need to understand where we can be most effective in saving lives.

“If Australia is anything to go by, we can expect the number of people developing cancer in the next 5 years to increase by about 17%. Without appropriate leadership this will cause a major strain on health services,” says Brian Cox.

The Office of the Auditor-General recently found that the effect of the $63 million Faster Cancer Treatment Indicators, championed by the Minister, have not been monitored and involved complicated and ambiguous definitions which make measurements unreliable.

“Independent advice from a single body, rather than the advice of separate individuals to various government committees, is needed for the control of cancer in New Zealand. It’s the best way of getting consistent and reliable measurements. Only then can we hope to reduce cancer incidence and mortality to the level of Australia by 2020,” says Brian Cox.

The New Zealand Cancer Control Trust was set up in 2001 to work alongside all cancer organisations and the government to improve data collection and planning for cancer prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care. Because cancer has many causes, affects many organs and involves many different approaches, it was agreed that an overarching cancer control strategy was required.

ENDS

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