According to research done at Queen’s University and published in the British Medical Journal, every month’s delay in cancer treatment can raise the risk of death by around 10 per cent.
“These findings are all the more important because they reflect larger patterns in the cancer system in Ontario,” said Dr. Timothy Hanna, a radiation oncologist and associate professor at Queen’s University Cancer Research Institute’s Division of Cancer Care and Epidemiology.
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Wait times for the treatment of other kinds of cancer have also gotten longer due to the pandemic.
“This is certainly a system-wide issue whose consequences are now emerging and certainly requires action,” said Dr. Hanna.
When a patient is fighting cancer, early detection and treatment save lives, Dr. Zacharias emphasized. This shows the urgent need to tackle the pandemic backlog of care and then fix wait times, which were already longer than recommended for some procedures. Ontario’s doctors have solutions outlined in the Prescription for Ontario: Doctors’ 5-Point Plan for Better Health Care.
The OMA wants to move ahead urgently with the creation of Integrated Ambulatory Centers for less complicated outpatient surgeries and procedures, she said.
“This could ease the burden on hospitals and reduce wait times for the women we've been talking about today. Every number represents a woman and her story.”
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