This morning I went to the Pancreatic Cancer UK Parliamentary drop-in. I learnt truly shocking stats regarding pancreatic cancer in London, which I'd like to share with you:
Only 32% of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in London will survive longer than one year, and this falls to 7% over 5 years.
7 in 10 people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in London receive no treatment at all.
More than half of people with pancreatic cancer die within three months of their diagnosis.
At the drop-in I discussed with people from Pancreatic Cancer UK faster, fairer and funded ways in which we can help people get diagnosed earlier, to therefore get a quicker referral to first treatment.
For example, right now too many people with pancreatic cancer are not getting the support and care they desperately need. One example that could help are prescriptions. Pancreatic Enzyme Replacement Therapy (PERT) is a simple tablet, readily available from pharmacies, that replaced enzymes so even when the pancreas stops working, food can be digested. Almost 2/3 of people in London do not receive it.
In my discussions with Hillingdon Hospital, and the Health Minister, I will push forward the need for the urgent mass distribution of PERT.
