Latest news with #SACT
The Herald Scotland
2 days ago
- Health
- The Herald Scotland
6% of lung cancer patients died within 30 days of treatment
The Scottish Conservatives have warned SNP ministers to 'get a grip' of the cancer crisis or risk more lives being lost. Public Health Scotland published its annual report on the number of patients who died within a month of starting their last cycle of systemic anti-cancer therapy (SACT). The Scottish Government does not currently have statutory targets set for SACT 30-day mortality. However, the highest reported cancer mortality within 30 days of starting treatment is lung and chest at 5.8%, according to the report. Out of the 2,496 people who began treatment for lung and chest cancer last year, 144 people died within the month of treatment. Dr Sandesh Gulhane, a GP and health spokesman for the Scottish Tories, said more work must be done to discover the cancer early. Read more: SACT drugs include cytotoxic chemotherapy, targeted therapies and immunotherapy. The deaths can be directly due to the treatment received, but deaths unrelated to treatment are also included in the statistics. These deaths could be due to disease progression, co-morbidities or any other unrelated cause. At the start of each treatment cycle, a prescriber assesses the patient to determine whether the treatment is suitable and safe. A decision to treat reflects the prescriber's belief that the treatment is likely to benefit the patient and outweigh any harmful side effects, including irreversible toxicity and the patient dying. The lowest 30-day mortality was for SACT treatment was breast cancer at 2%, with 95 out of 4,707 patients dying. However, 1.7% of the 460 patients treated for curable lung and chest cancer died within 30 days of their last treatment, compared to 6.6% of the 2,067 patients treated for non-curable diagnoses. At NHS Ayrshire and Arran, the highest 30-day mortality was 8.6%, where 13 patients died out of 152 patients. Dr Gulhane told The Herald: 'These harrowing statistics must be an urgent wake-up call for the SNP. 'Successive SNP health secretaries have failed to get a grip of Scotland's cancer care crisis and lives are being lost as a result. Read more: 'Everyone knows how crucial early diagnosis and treatment is when tackling an aggressive form of the disease such as lung cancer, so it is even more devastating that lives are being lost within a month of starting treatment. 'We cannot keep letting more and more families across Scotland experience the loss of loved ones in this way. 'The SNP have failed to meet their cancer waiting time targets for well over a decade now, but they still have no plan to address this ticking timebomb. 'Neil Gray should show common sense and prioritise early detection programs, promote healthy lifestyles and guarantee cancer services will have the resources they need to support patients.' It comes as the Scottish Government were last month urged by the Scottish Liberal Democrats to roll out a lung cancer screening programme to save thousands of lives. The programme was first recommended three years ago by the UK National Screening Committee, with target screening suggested for those aged 55 to 75 who currently smoke or used to. Cancer Research UK suggested around 4,000 cancer suffers could be diagnosed earlier with the scheme, saving at least 2,000 lives. Screening is already up and running in England and there are similar plans being developed in Wales, however the Scottish Government does not currently plan to introduce a programme. A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'We are determined to improve cancer survival, and we know earlier diagnosis is crucial. That is why we have already committed to a lung screening pilot which will initially concentrate on some of the most deprived areas in Scotland, as the first step to a national rollout. 'We have published an optimal diagnostic pathway for lung cancer, supported by almost £3.5 million, setting ambitious timeframes for diagnosis and treatment. 'Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers being diagnosed by our Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services, which are finding cancer faster, evaluation shows it can reduce the time from referral to diagnosis for patients to a median wait of 14 days.'
BBC News
07-05-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Sunderland Uni launches short cancer care course for nurses
Region's only short cancer care course launches 20 minutes ago Share Save Share Save University of Sunderland Rachel Boyd, left, from South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust, helped develop the course A region's only short-term, face-to-face cancer care course will launch in September. The University of Sunderland's Systemic Anti-Cancer Therapy (SACT) course is designed for nursing staff and has been developed with South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust. There have been five applications already, with up to 20 places available in the first cohort. The eight-week programme will begin in September. The university said it was the only short-term, face-to-face SACT course in the North East. Students will be taught about drug-based cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy and hormone therapy. These treatments are designed to target and kill cancer cells throughout the body, rather than just one specific location. Programme leader Karen Humphreys, said the new course was "crucial" in helping develop and expand the skills of nurses who were already providing systemic anti-cancer treatment to patients. Rachel Boyd, SACT clinical educator at the trust, who helped develop the programme, said it would boost the care patients received. "This will enhance patient safety as well as the nursing care patients receive throughout their cancer journey, a time when they will face complex treatments and regimes," Ms Boyd said. "It also means there will be further career opportunities within the cancer workforce, which is a growing part of our organisation." Follow BBC Sunderland on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Related stories New nursing course opens up career to all ages
