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Cancer Council SA has today launched its ‘election priorities’ – a blueprint for the next state government to reduce the impact of cancer - and is urging all parliamentarians to implement policy change for cancer control.

Chief Executive Cancer Council SA, Professor Brenda Wilson, said that while we have made great progress in the fight against cancer over the past few decades, policy change is crucial to reducing the death rate further.

“During the term of the next state government over 36,000 South Australians are expected to be diagnosed with cancer* at a cost to the community of nearly $1.5 billion.”

“Cancer Council SA is challenging the next state government to reduce the financial and social burden of cancer on the community by adopting some key policy changes and improvements.”

“We have already met with several of the electoral candidates about the issues and will continue to visit the relevant Ministers, Shadow Ministers and Ministerial Advisors right up until the March election,” said Professor Wilson.

Cancer Council SA is calling on the next state government to:

- commit at least $2.15 million to fund a South Australian Cancer Research Collaborative to strengthen cancer research in SA
- ensure that all cancer patients have equitable access to treatment by improving transport and accommodation assistance provided to regional cancer patients
- establish waiting time standards for all patients with suspected cancer
- increase funding for quit smoking campaigns, eliminate tobacco displays at point-of-sale and make alfresco settings smoke-free to reduce the smoking rate to 17 per cent by 2013
- address the obesity epidemic by restricting unhealthy food advertising, promoting healthy food in schools and ensuring all future infrastructure developments promote physical activity
- reduce the incidence of skin cancer by making all schools SunSmart, investing in skin cancer prevention campaigns and monitoring and reporting on solarium compliance.

“There is no other single health or social issue that effects such a significant proportion of the community as cancer does with 9,000 South Australians diagnosed with the disease each year,” said Professor Wilson.

“We hope that all political parties sit up and take notice of our call for improved cancer control and include our initiatives within their policies,” said Professor Wilson.

Professor Wilson said that Cancer Council SA is particularly concerned about the inequality that exists for regional cancer patients and urges the government to address the issue by improving the Patient Assistance Transport Scheme (PATS).

“The further away a patient lives from a major treatment centre, the poorer their chance of survival.”

“We are calling on the next state government to ensure that all South Australians have equitable access to treatment no matter where they live.”

“Through the PATS system regional cancer patients are provided with some financial assistance for both travel and accommodation in Adelaide. But the current level of financial assistance is unrealistic and well below what is available in other states,” said Professor Wilson.

Patients must live over 100 km from Adelaide to receive assistance, so patients from areas like Victor Harbor and the Barossa currently face a significant personal financial burden to undergo cancer treatment.

Cancer Council is calling for the qualifying distance for assistance to be reduced from 100 km to 65 km, for the transport reimbursement to be increased from 16 cents per kilometre to a more realistic figure and for accommodation rebates to be increased from $30 per person to $85 per room and indexed annually.

“With current travel and accommodation costs it is unacceptable for rural and remote cancer sufferers to receive travel reimbursement of 16 cents per kilometre and to expect anybody to find safe, clean accommodation in Adelaide for $30 a night.”

“The PATS system needs to be improved so that regional cancer patients have the same access to treatment as those in the metropolitan area or we will continue to see a disparity in survival rates,” said Professor Wilson.

Another area of serious concern for Cancer Council SA is waiting times for appointments with specialist medical practitioners for people with a suspected cancer.

“Currently waiting times for cancer appointments and treatment are not monitored in SA and Cancer Council SA is calling on the next state government to establish waiting time standards and monitor them,” said Professor Wilson.

Internationally, waiting time targets are set and data are collected. The UK Government has a two-week waiting time target from GP referral to first specialist appointment for all patients with suspected cancer. There is also a one month target from diagnosis to treatment for all cancers.

“Cancer patients are entitled to know how long they can expect to wait for cancer treatment; waiting times are a common cause of distress for patients who call our Helpline. If patients are not treated in a timely manner the chance of successful treatment and survival can be reduced.”

“Setting and monitoring waiting times for cancer patients should be high on the health agenda as thousands of lives could potentially be at stake,” said Professor Wilson.

Cancer Council SA advocates on behalf of the community to reduce the burden of cancer in the community.

“Cancer is already the biggest health burden on our community. With more people surviving cancer and our ageing population, the community and financial costs of cancer are only set to increase.


“While we have made great progress in the fight against cancer, South Australia is now lagging behind the other states in many areas of cancer control. If cancer death rates are to be further reduced it is essential that cancer control is given the attention it deserves,” said Professor Wilson.


The full election priorities submission is available at www.cancersa.org.au/ElectionPriorities

* Excluding non-melanoma skin cancers