North West Cancer Research are a charity that fund world-class cancer research tailored to the needs of the North West. Their most recent report assesses the impact of the 25 key cancers across the North West.
Unfortunately, there are some shocking results found in the report and a brief outline below of some of the results shows the disparity of incidences of cancer in the North West in comparison with the average for the rest of the country:
LANCASHIRE
In Lancashire, cases of cervical cancer are 21% higher than the national average. Cases of bladder cancer are 18% higher. There are 14% more instances of head and neck cancer and lung, trachea, and bronchus cancer and ovarian cancer are 10% higher here.
MERSEYSIDE
In Merseyside, cases of lung, trachea and bronchus cancer are 75% more common than the rest of the UK. Instances of cervical cancer are 35% higher than the national average while head and neck cancer is 30% more common. In this region, bladder cancer also has a higher prevalence (17%) than other areas of the country.
GREATER MANCHESTER
In the Greater Manchester area, liver cancer is 28% more common while cases of lung, trachea and bronchus cancer are 24% higher. Head and neck cancer cases were found to be 16% higher in the region and ovarian cancer and stomach cancer cases were 7% and 6% higher than the national average respectively.
CHESHIRE
Meanwhile, over in Cheshire, the research has found that oesophageal cancer cases are 26% higher, followed by liver cancer cases which are 24% higher. Instances of lung, trachea and bronchus cancer were found to be 16% more common while bladder cancer was 13% more common in the county. Cases of stomach cancer were 7% higher than the national average.
CUMBRIA
Cumbria saw 35% more cases of cervical cancer than the average across the UK and cases of colorectal cancer were 27% more common here. Head and neck cancer cases were once again higher than the national average (21%) but also breast cancer cases were 9% higher in the county.
The BBC has reported that the covid-19 surge in January 2021 has severely impacted key services, including cancer when they are already working hard to recover from last year’s massive backlog. The BBC reported that data for January 2021 shows that under 23,000 people started treatment for cancer, as opposed to nearly 27,500 in January 2020.
It is clear that the diagnosis and treatment of cancer throughout the country has been hugely affected by the pandemic. Many people have experienced unreasonable delays and in recognition of the claims they may face, NHS Resolution set up a new scheme to meet liabilities arising from the special healthcare arrangements being put in place in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
If you think that you or a loved one’s treatment has been affected by the pandemic and would like legal advice regarding this, please do not hesitate to contact our specialist team on 0845 287 0939 or by email.
