Wishart: Ovarian cancer patients in rural communities face uphill struggle for care

Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP for Shetland, Beatrice Wishart has today demanded the government urgently tackle inequalities facing ovarian cancer patients in more rural and remote communities, after new analysis revealed that patients in the Highlands, Grampian and islands have the lowest survival rates and are also the least likely to receive a surgical treatment.  

The new report by Public Health Scotland revealed that:  

• The median survival for patients in the Northern Cancer Alliance, which takes in Highland, Grampian, Tayside and the islands, was 2.1 years. This was lower than 2.5 years for those in the West of Scotland Cancer Network and 3.6 years for those in the South East Cancer Network  
• Just 57% of ovarian cancer patients in the Northern Cancer Network received surgery, compared with 66% in the West of Scotland Cancer and 67% in the South East Cancer Network  

Ms Wishart commented: 

“It's clear that women with ovarian cancer still face a postcode lottery when it comes to treatment and diagnosis. That's absolutely unacceptable in a modern healthcare context.

“Those living outside the central belt and in more remote locations are facing an uphill struggle to access good quality care. The Scottish Government's current model of centralisation, which has failed to invest sufficiently in local services, just makes that struggle worse.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats would bring forward a robust network of local health services so that everyone can access the care they need close to home. On top of that, we would rollout a bigger range of cancer specialists and professionals, ensuring that diagnosis and treatment is comprehensive across the country."