THE LATEST annual report from the National Cancer Registry shows a 50 per cent increase in the number of cancers diagnosed here each year since the mid 1990s. But it also shows a significant increase in the percentage of patients still alive five years after a cancer diagnosis, rising from 40 per cent in the mid 1990s to 55 per cent now.
This annual increase in the number of people surviving cancer reflects a new reality: depending on the type, cancer is increasingly a chronic disease rather than the death sentence perceived by many in previous generations. Modern diagnostic methods and treatment options are reflected in the more than 90,000 people in the Republic now alive some 15 years after a cancer diagnosis. A significant increase in chemotherapy for all cancers in the last decade is a tribute to more streamlined care as well as a testament to many recent medical advances.
Our overall cancer incidence is the second highest in Europe, suggesting we need to take a more determined approach to prevention. But for those who do develop a tumour, the number of deaths from cancer in the Republic is close to the European average, a reflection of the quality of cancer services here. A separate report, “Lung cancer incidence, mortality treatment and survival in the Republic of Ireland 1994-2008”, reveals a disturbing finding: lung cancer has now overtaken breast cancer as the cancer most likely to cause death in women. The 2 per cent per annum increase in incidence reflects a greater number of women smokers and contrasts with a falling death rate from lung cancer among men. Unfortunately lung cancer has one of the poorest survival rates of all cancers; just 11 per cent of patients are alive five years after initial diagnosis. It is very much a disease associated with social deprivation, with older patients and those in lower socioeconomic groups experiencing the worst survival rates from lung cancer. The report said 90 per cent of lung cancer cases can be directly attributed to smoking and warned: “If progress is to be made in reducing the incidence of lung cancer in Ireland in the future, renewed efforts must be made to reduce tobacco use, especially in women.”
Overall, this year’s annual report card for cancer represents good news with the obvious exception of the rising number of young women dying from lung cancer. Minister for Health James Reilly must now promote cancer prevention with the same vigour with which his predecessor pursued cancer control.