“In oncology, the loss of time is a loss of opportunity”, recalls Daniel Nizri, president of the League against Cancer, which is launching a campaign “ for fairer care on the occasion of World Cancer Day on Saturday 4 February.
“In 2020, 455,000 new cases of cancer were detected, compared to 495,000 in 2021, and 499,000 in 2022” compares Jean-Yves Blay, president of the federation of cancer centers Unicancer. According to him, there is no doubt: the pandemic has caused diagnostic delays. The mobilization of the health system around the Covid is not the only cause invoked: “Since the deconfinements, it seems that some patients are taking longer to reach the health system”worries the oncologist.
“I couldn’t get an appointment”
According to Unicancer, among patients affected by the disease, 10 to 15% would not have a attending physician. During their first consultation, some of them explain: “I’ve had this for a few months, but I haven’t been able to get an appointment”, regrets Jean-Yves Blay. Health professionals agree that diagnostic times vary depending on the territory. “In the Alpes-Maritimes, access to cancer care is not a problem, we are normally equipped. On the other hand, in the Var, the hospitals are out of breath ”deplores Jérôme Barrière, oncologist in Cagnes-sur-Mer.
“The most economically fragile half diagnosed”
When patients manage to get a first appointment, the rest of the care pathway with the appropriate specialists sometimes looks perilous. “Getting an MRI can take two months. If the professional calls for his patient, it can go faster. Still need time, continues Jérôme Barrière, who wishes to recall the essential nature of medical assistants in order to “free up time for doctors who are overwhelmed with administration”. The date of the beginning of treatment having a direct influence on the “chances of remission, the speed of appointments is therefore essential”recalls the League.
The decline in purchasing power also worries the association, which recalls that “The most economically fragile and least educated populations are almost twice less diagnosed with their cancer through screening”. Inflation could widen inequalities in access to care and “reorganize the priorities of the most precarious, who sometimes struggle to advance consultation fees”fears Daniel Nizri.
“Oncology is not spared”
If, in a context of public hospital crisis, the specialty of oncology “isn’t the most tense”, according to Jérôme Barrière, she is no less concerned by the lack of arms. Despite everything, the cancer centers offer reasonable waiting times because “otherwise, we know that we condemn the patients”, admits Daniel Nizri. The support is taking place somehow, “sometimes to the detriment of supportive care”which allow patients to better experience the treatment.
This supportive care could also have been disrupted by the lack of medication. According to the League, 68% of oncologists believe that shortages of cancer drugs have an impact on the five-year survival of their patients. Among these shortages “10% of drug shortages relate to oncology”. The replacement of these sometimes leads to a loss of luck or discomfort for the patient. A feeling ” intolerable “ for Daniel Nizri.