- Proportion of cancer patients dying within a year is higher in certain areas
- Nearly four in ten patients in Barking and Dagenham die within 12 months
- This is compared to a lower 24 per cent of people in North East Hampshire
- Wealthier parts of London, like Westminster, among best-performing areas
- Macmillan Cancer Support published estimates of variations in cancer care
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Ordeal: Vikki Webb lost her father in May 2011. His lung cancer was only discovered when pain in his hips became so severe he paid for a private scan
The postcode lottery is killing 6,000 cancer patients prematurely each year, it was claimed yesterday.
Around 6,000 more could live for at least 12 months after a cancer diagnosis every year if the average survival rate for England matched the top 10 per cent of local healthcare areas.
Figures show the proportion dying within a year of a cancer diagnosis is two-thirds higher in the worst-performing areas of the country than the best.
Almost four in ten cancer patients in Barking and Dagenham, Essex, die within just 12 months, compared with one in four in North East Hampshire, says the charity Macmillan Cancer Support.
It has published estimates of variations in cancer care drawn from official data on cancer survival rates for 2011-2013.
The assessment follows warnings by MPs of a postcode lottery meaning that in some areas, five times as many patients are waiting more than two weeks to see a specialist.Â
A recent study of 35 countries by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development found only Poland has worse survival rates than Britain for breast, bowel and cervical cancers.
The latest analysis showed the number of people dying within a year of being diagnosed was almost 60 per cent higher in Barking and Dagenham than North East Hampshire – where only 24 per cent of cancer patients do not survive for 12 months.
In Barking and Dagenham, 38 per cent of people diagnosed die within a year, a figure matched by Crawley, West Sussex; Newham, London; Swale, Kent; Vale Royal, Cheshire and Thanet, Kent.
Wealthier parts of London and the South East are among the best-performing areas, including Westminster – where 27 per cent of people die within a year – and Richmond, Surrey, where the figure is 28 per cent.
Well-performing: Wealthier parts of London are among the best-performing areas of the country, including Westminster (pictured), where 27 per cent of people die of breast, bowel and cervical cancers within a year
Contrast: In Barking and Dagenham (pictured), 38 per cent of people diagnosed with cancer die within a year
Experts say the alarming divide could be due to variations in how promptly patients are diagnosed and treated.
Areas with the poorest survival rates are, on average, failing to meet a key NHS target which aims to ensure cancer patients begin treatment within 62 days following an urgent referral from their GP.
Macmillan points out that there are regional variations in opening times of diagnostic units and availability of experienced staff.
Its research also shows people do not always recognise the signs and symptoms of the disease, and may delay seeking help.
If people do go to their GP early with cancer symptoms, these are sometimes not picked up by doctors, who may wait longer than necessary before referring someone to a specialist.
The figures show that of the 80 per cent of cancer patients who saw their GP with symptoms before going to hospital, 17 per cent saw them three or four times. One in ten saw their GP five or more times.
Juliet Bouverie, director of services and influencing at Macmillan Cancer Support, said the figures show ‘an inexcusable postcode lottery, which is responsible for 6,000 people dying needlessly within 12 months of being diagnosed with cancer every year’.
Auditor Vikki Webb, 34, from Manchester, described the ordeal suffered by her father, Ade, who died in May 2011 aged 58.
He had been diagnosed with lung cancer just eight weeks previously.
The former nursing home owner visited his GP several times with a persistent cough, but was told he had bronchitis and given repeated courses of antibiotics.Â
His cancer was only discovered when pain in his hips became so severe he paid for a private scan.
His daughter said: ‘He had a persistent and very nasty cough for about 18 months before he died.
‘Despite being a heavy smoker for over 30 years, and being slap in the middle of the average age to develop lung cancer, he wasn’t offered a scan.’
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