If Services are Already Good, Why Change Them?

The NHS in Merseyside and Cheshire is rightly proud of the high-quality services it provides to cancer patients and their families. Since the mid-1990s, cancer services in our area have improved dramatically, driven by wider national programmes such as the NHS Cancer Plan and the Cancer Reform Strategy.

For example:

• The average waiting time for cancer patients in Merseyside and Cheshire is considerably below the national standard of 62 days.
• We have become better at finding cancer earlier through well-organised patient screening programmes for breast, cervical and bowel cancers.
• Merseyside and Cheshire ranks among the top six areas in the country for patients surviving five years or more after being diagnosed with lung cancer.
• We’re becoming more proactive and creative in the way we reach out and educate people about cancer. The mobile iVan vehicle, for instance, has been a big success in encouraging people to see their doctor earlier – dramatically improving their chances of successful treatment.

Despite all this, cancer is still the biggest killer across Merseyside and Cheshire. This is partly because of our region’s industrial heritage.

But it’s also due to pockets of high levels of poverty and the fact that people are generally living longer and therefore have a greater chance of developing diseases like cancer.