Cancer detection rates lowest in poor areas

● Inequalities in diagnosis of disease ‘shame our society’, SNP ministers told

People living in Scotland’s most deprived areas are significantly less likely to have cancers detected early than their richer peers, official statistics have revealed.

Only 22 per cent of breast, bowel and lung cancers among people living in the poorest parts of the country were diagnosed at the earliest point, known as stage one, the NHS figures show.

By contrast, patients living in the richest areas were more likely to have the disease detected early on, with 29 per cent being diagnosed at stage one.

Rapid diagnosis of cancer is known to be important to survival rates as it makes treatment more likely to be successful than if the disease is caught at a more advanced stage.

The figures, which relate to the years 2017 and 2018, also showed a similar trend for late cancer diagnosis when the disease had progressed to stage four. Just over 29 per cent of patients in the poorest areas had their cancer detected at this point – a significantly higher proportion than in the richest, where the figure was 20 per cent.

However, the statistics also showed that a quarter of Scots with cancer are now being diagnosed at stage one, a figure which has increased since an official health drive was launched in 2012. Cancer Research UK described the difference in detection rates between rich and poor areas as “unacceptable”.

“For this to change,

it’s essential we see more tailored resources being targeted at Scotland’s poorer communities,” the charity’s public affairs manager Gordon Matheson said.

“The Scottish Government must also ensure that there’s enough staff to do this vital work if we are to meet current and future need.”

Holyrood’s opposition parties described the figures as “shocking” and called for Health Secretary Jeane Freeman to set out how she planned to improve detection rates when Parliament returns.

Labour’s health spokeswoman Monica Lennon said: “It is vital that cancers are detected early to give people the best chance of survival. That is why it is so shocking to learn that people living in deprived communities are not getting diagnosed early at the same rate as those from better off backgrounds.

“Health inequalities such as these shame our society.”

Public health minister Joe Fitzpatrick said it was “encouraging” that the most deprived parts of the country had also seen the biggest increase in the proportion of cancers detected early.

“Cancer death rates have decreased by more than 10 per cent in the last decade and early detection is crucial to this,” he said.

“We are continuing to tackle variations in early detection rates, committing over £1 million to health boards and third sector organisations since 2016 to improve screening uptake in groups least likely to participate.”