Marie Curie response to Macmillan paper

Simon Jones, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Marie Curie, said: “Inequities in cancer and end of life care remain a key issue, despite successive government commitments to cutting variations in care. Sadly it remains the case that around one fifth of people are first diagnosed with cancer following an emergency admission and that for these people life expectancy is significantly reduced.  We also know from many studies that late diagnosis as an emergency admission is higher within deprived communities.

“This latest study highlights the importance of looking at this issue in more detail to help us understand exactly why those in deprived communities are experiencing more emergency admissions in their last six months of life than those who live in more affluent areas.

“Access to specialist palliative care is a very important aspect of ensuring that people have better planned care towards the end of their lives resulting in fewer emergency admissions.  As is early recognition of symptoms leading to early diagnosis which would lead to a reduction in the unacceptably high number of people who are first diagnosed with cancer after having been admitted to hospital as an emergency.”