Link to article below: Cancer patients in the UK should be very worried about this (and if you live in Sussex, even more worried).
The Chief Executive of West Sussex PCT is now moving to the Department of Health to advise and implement the Governments new Health Reforms, and set up the new Health and Wellbeing Boards.
Patients in Sussex need to be more worried, because Sussex has decided to implement the changes early (and has already set up as of the beginning of April.
Peeps should remember that West Sussex PCT are one of the PCT’s who have placed a blanket ban on funding any type of stereotactic radiotherapy (such as Cyberknife or TomoTherapy), other than gamma-knife for brain mets, despite the fact that almost a dozen NHS Hospitals have bought Cyberknife and TomoTherapy. Me thinks that instead of only 28 PCT’s funding it, pretty soon there will be zero.
Potentially worrying news about the national context - let’s all keep focusing on the local context in interactions with our professionals as they will have some influence (hopefully…) Thanks for sharing
That sucks.
I don’t pretend to understand it all but why do they have to keep changing everything surely Drs are Drs not accountants? The manager of our local surgery hadn’t even heard of the cyberknife
cheers
Caroline
more fat cats, i know its a dreadful thing to think out loud but sometimes i think if these people had cancer, alzheimer’s, ms, and many other rotten diseases would they be so quick to mess with the system. Would they give more drugs, would they be more sympathetic. Shame on David Cameron who had a disabled son and knows suffering, shame on him.
The idea behind centralised commissioning is supposedly to reduce the postcode lottery, but in fact, it is more likely to restrict access to life saving drugs and treatments - especially as one of the main advisers has been involved in restricting treatments that can save lives (as this chap has).
Yep - I know local decision policies by PCTs has led to diversity in provision that does not seem “fair” but at least the more enlightened areas could help lead the way until there is the definitive evidence of “cost effectiveness” that drives national decisions on treatments. With treatments for secondaries not being able to deliver this evidence quickly means, in my opinion, that only very tried and tested treatments get allowed to be used and we need to be able to have access to those that could be useful if given time for the evidence to be collected in this country.
Fran, that’s it in a nutshell isn’t it. What’s more, it bodes very badly when someone like this chap leads the way. You only have to look at West Sussex PCT’s record on funding cancer services, and the spurious grounds they use to deny drugs and treatments to see that things are going to get worse.
I live in West Sussex and i’m worried about being denied drugs that I need. I’m probably barking up the wrong tree here but when i needed specialist treatment after brain surgery years ago, my london hospital said that it all depended on my PCT and whether they thought I was worth it. When I went back to my gp with a begging and pleading head on he said that it was up to him and he would decide if I needed treatment. I luckily got it.
So, is it worth getting on your hands and knees at the GPs if ever you need treatment in future?
Hi Lady, It’s true that GP’s can sometimes find a way round the system and wangle things, but the decision as to what to fund rests with PCT’s or Specialist Commissioning Groups (if the treatment/drug has yet to be approved by NICE).
if you live in Sussex the New Well Being Board came into operation at the beginning of April, to replace PCT’s in the area.
Once a drug or treatment has has been approved by NICE, funders (previously PCT’s), are obliged to pay for it within three months of NICE approval. but for drugs and treatments that have yet to be evaluated by NICE (like Cyberknife and TomoTherapy), it is up to Specialised Commissioning groups. The Government are supposedly attempting to end the postcode lottery, by centralising commissioning, but with advisors like the previous Chief Executive of W Sussex PCT joining the Department of Health to implement these changes, the chances are that rationing will become much worse.
Lemongrove - do you know what the timetable is for NICE to look at Cyberknife, if it is at all?
Finty, The Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson asked NICE to conduct a fast track review of Cyberknife in April 2010, but NICE then started deliberating about whether it actually required evaluation (since radiotherapy is well proven already), or whether only parts of it would require evaluation. I did write to NICE, and they told me that what they are trying to work out whether the tracking element, has any clinical advantage. Anyway, they have asked their radiological group to decide what parts of Cyberknife require evaluation, and when they decide they apparently will then need to get permission from Accuray to deconstruct the machine. So basically, evaluation is still a way off.