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The Irish Cancer Society has issued a stark warning about a 60% increase in the number of people waiting for a colonoscopy.
It is now feared that the delayed diagnoses could affect survival rates, with one in five people on the urgent list now waiting more than 28 days to get tested. One in 10 people on urgent and non-urgent lists have been waiting more than a year.
The latest figures reveal that at the end of September there were 18,189 people on the waiting list for colonoscopy, this is 61% more compared to the same period last year.
Rachel Morragh, Director of Advocacy and External Affairs for the Irish Cancer Society, said access to cancer care and diagnosis is “essentially rationed by waiting lists.”
“There will be people on both lists who certainly have cancer and are waiting for this diagnostic test to alert them to that.”
He cautioned that the chances of survival drop dramatically the longer a person has to wait for diagnosis and treatment.
“In terms of when the cancer is diagnosed, if it is diagnosed in stage one and stage two, the longer-term survival is considerably better than for patients diagnosed with stage three and stage four.
“For colorectal cancer, which would be the most common cancer diagnosed by colonoscopy, the five-year survival is 95% if it is diagnosed in stage one, but it is only 10% if it is diagnosed in stage four.”
Lack of investment in services now “prevents people from getting the earliest cancer diagnosis possible,” he added.
“We are trying to increase the plight of people facing these delays. Not just colonoscopy but other diagnostic tests, especially ahead of next week’s budget, and we are asking the government to provide very significant funding for services. against cancer”.
A third of the people on the list have been waiting between six and 12 months for a colonoscopy, while there has been a worrying increase in the number of patients waiting more than a year.
There are now 1,957 people waiting more than 12 months, which represents an increase of 82.3% over the number who waited in May.
Although the number of people on the waiting list had increased slightly on a monthly basis between September 2019 and February 2020, with the exception of January 2020, the number increased significantly in March 2020, during which time health restrictions public, due to Covid-19, were put in place.
The Irish Cancer Society is promoting a number of immediate measures to facilitate waiting lists, including funding for additional triage nurses to validate GP referral clinical data recommendations; provision of additional resources, including physical space; and the expansion of non-invasive testing.
Ms Morragh added that pill cams, or capsule colonoscopies, are an important additional measure in using innovation and additional capacity and are another avenue for patients.
He said that it appears that funds have been provided to support this in the Winter Plan, which is welcome, but additional training is required to accelerate the implementation of the pill chambers.
An HSE spokesperson said the number of referrals has increased month-over-month since May. “Endoscopy units have resumed their services, however they are operating at 60% of their activity levels prior to the Covid-19 outbreak.
“This is to ensure the safety of both patients and staff within endoscopy services.
“Delays in waiting times for urgent colonoscopy due to Covid-19 began to occur in March 2020 and peaked in May. The number of patients waiting more than 28 days for an urgent colonoscopy has steadily decreased since may.
“This group of patients remains a key focus for HSE, so patients who may be more likely to have cancer or another major gastrointestinal diagnosis are prioritized for an endoscopy procedure.”
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