- Former WHO expert Karol Sikora gives stark account of NHS cancer care
- Believes patients must work system rather than go with what they are told
- Encourages sufferers to do own research and demand doctors keep up
- Also suggests bribing staff with gifts to ensure appointments are prompt
Euan McLelland For MailOnline
223
View
comments
In his new tell all book The Street-Wise Patient’s Guide to Surviving Cancer, Karol Sikora (pictured) lifts the lid on a lottery he claims cancer sufferers face when being treated by the NHS
Cancer sufferers have the best chance of surviving if they write up their own care plans, woo GP receptionists with chocolate and badger the NHS every step of their fight, a top cancer consultant has revealed.
Former chief of the World Health Organisation cancer programme Karol Sikora has warned patients that Britain’s national health body is not in place to offer the best quality individual care but rather make the responsibility of looking after the nation as streamlined as possible.
In his new tell all book The Street-Wise Patient’s Guide to Surviving Cancer, Sikora lifts the lid on a lottery he claims cancer sufferers face when being treated by the NHS.
He explains how best to ‘work the system’ – with advice ranging from giving gifts to doctors, nurses and hospital staff to piecing together your own care plan.
Sikora, who has worked in the NHS for more than four decades, said: ‘The system is not actually there to help you — or at least not you alone. The system is there to maximise the quality of cancer treatment overall, to make sure the organisation and the people within it make a living and to make sure that the burden on society as a whole is not too great.
‘Of course, much of the time, that will mean treating your cancer as quickly and effectively as possible. But — and this is the important point — not all the time.
‘It doesn’t make much difference whether you are one of the people who get cured or not.’
Brexit would jeopardise the lives of 30,000 cancer patients,…
Stroke victims’ new saviour…magnetic blood: Pioneering…
With millions of people requiring treatment each year, Sikora advises sufferers to take steps to avoid being lost in the system.
As early as possible following diagnosis, he recommends patients research their illness thoroughly and obtain the best treatment plans from the world’s most respected private hospitals.
With that information, they should create their own schedule and make sure the hospital sticks to it.
He explains how best to ‘work the system’ – with advice ranging from giving gifts to doctors, nurses and hospital staff to piecing together your own care plan
He then instructs patients to make sure their treatment begins right away. He believes delays of even just several weeks ‘can quite literally be life or death’, so encourages sufferers to keep on to their specialists if there is any postponement in their care.
Sikora also stresses how much drug availability varies between NHS hospitals. He insists personal research should again be carried out to establish what drugs work best and patients should then demand those.
In perhaps the most damning indictment of the national health provider, the cancer expert recommends those undergoing treatment become overly friendly with receptionists and consultants’ secretaries – even giving them chocolates, flowers and wine – to help bribe them into securing you timely appointments.
Share or comment on this article
WARNING: Naked man suicide attempt in lion enclosure
Tutor caught on camera having sex with student in classroom
HS girl allegedly filmed having sex with 25 boys on snapchat
Latest ISIS execution video shows man’s head crushed by rock
Baby does Running Man Challenge and nails it in cute video
Channel 4 documentary trailer: Secret Life of the Human Pups
Girl gives brother death stare after he knocks over…
Cat-fight TKO! Feline puts impressive choke-hold on opponent
Former Kowloon resident opens up about life in the notorious…
Cat or dog or something else? Strange creature plays under…
Demi Rose leaves little to the imagination in lacy black…
Incredible footage of tiger shark feeding frenzy off WA…
‘Suicide by LION’: Man strips naked and jumps into a Chilean…
Lord of the Rings star Elijah Wood says Hollywood is gripped…
Outraged parents claim court refused to prosecute babysitter…
Pilot of doomed MS804 jet spoke with Egyptian air traffic…
Incredible ‘lost’ photo album shows Edward VIII and his…
Secret life of the ‘human pups’: Weird world of the grown…
Pictured: Melbourne university lecturer, 34, who died of…
First horrific pictures of Calvin Harris’ mangled car wreck…
Former Biggest Loser contestants claim staff on NBC show fed…
‘We will bring this plane down’: The ominous graffiti…
Teen drives SAMURAI SWORD all the way through friend’s…
Smoked: Dramatic pictures show fried car and charred bodies…
Comments (223)
Share what you think
-
Newest -
Oldest -
Best rated -
Worst rated
The comments below have not been moderated.
The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.
Find out now