A cancer-industry view of its future
Authors of a report predicting a continuing rise in cancer rates expect cancer will increasingly be managed with lifelong drug treatment and lifelong monitoring, as in diabetes and asthma. The direct cost for managing the medical care of one cancer patient was approximately £20,000 in 2004. If we are heading into a 'positive chemotherapy future' then, 'by 2025 this figure could easily rise to £100,000 per patient per year – a total of perhaps £1 million over a lifetime. We are starting to spend vast amounts of UK tax on the National Health Service (NHS) taking the total healthcare budget up to £80 billion per year. We could consume a lot more than this in the future just on treating cancer. The explosion of new therapies in cancer care is going to continue and pricing of these drugs will remain high. If effective drugs emerge from the research and development pipeline, the cancer drug market will be worth US$300 billion globally by 2025.'
(Sikora 'Cancer 2025: the future of cancer care' 2004)
A thriving enterprise with a guaranteed future, 'cancer' is a growth industry in every sense of the word. It would be extremely unlikely that this particular industry would champion a case which has the potential to undermine its very existence.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
A Best Breast Cancer Site
Taking a prevention perspective allows group to point out the problems with the current model in the breast cancer industry
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2 comments:
We are already being conditioned for pre-cancer care with encouragement to have genetic testing to see who is predisposed to cancer.
Just because you have a gene, does not mean you WILL get cancer, and just because you do not have a gene, does not mean you WONT get cancer.
In both instances, you are better off keeping healthy to reduce risk.
The breast screening we are doing looks for clues of early changes, allowing us to put gentle strategies in place to settle things down.
Isnt this a better approach than waiting for a positive diagnosis?
Jo Firth
Safe Breast Imaging
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Alena
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