BC.... The " sexy " cancer
I feel the need to post after reading a letter to the editor of the Sunday telegraph today that has really upset me.
A very mixed up reader wrote " its up to funding bodies and the government to make ...
Forum Discussion
OK, I could be guilty of a degree of confected outrage. I know what 'sexy' means in this context, but I still chose to be pissed off about it.
It is true that the hard work that has gone into the creation of support services for breast cancer patients has made our experience significantly different from that of people diagnosed with other cancers. My dear friend, Trish, died of lung cancer 5 years ago. I was genuinely shocked at how little support was available to her. I couldn't believe that a woman could be so left out in the cold because her cancer happened to be on the 'wrong' side of her rib cage. Don't even start me on the attitude of some hospital staff. I went with her when she was admitted to a major teaching hospital in Melbourne and the way she was treated by the admissions clerk-- 'I suppose you must be a smoker' -- sent me into a near apoplectic round of reports and complaints. Trish had a distinctly 'unsexy' cancer and she was reminded of that again and again.
None of us take our Breast Care nurses for granted and maybe the time has come for similar services to be rolled out for all cancer streams. The question is, who pays for that? Many of the services we count on are funded by tumour specific donations and bequests to philanthropic organisations. I don't think anyone who has benefited from the McGrath Foundation would argue that the money wasn't well spent, but the costs of providing Cancer Liaison nurses for everyone seems to be making the bean counters baulk. My local health care service has included this in their 5 year plan, but I worry it will be unachievable unless there is a change in State and federal funding. Not looking likely at the moment. Marg
It is true that the hard work that has gone into the creation of support services for breast cancer patients has made our experience significantly different from that of people diagnosed with other cancers. My dear friend, Trish, died of lung cancer 5 years ago. I was genuinely shocked at how little support was available to her. I couldn't believe that a woman could be so left out in the cold because her cancer happened to be on the 'wrong' side of her rib cage. Don't even start me on the attitude of some hospital staff. I went with her when she was admitted to a major teaching hospital in Melbourne and the way she was treated by the admissions clerk-- 'I suppose you must be a smoker' -- sent me into a near apoplectic round of reports and complaints. Trish had a distinctly 'unsexy' cancer and she was reminded of that again and again.
None of us take our Breast Care nurses for granted and maybe the time has come for similar services to be rolled out for all cancer streams. The question is, who pays for that? Many of the services we count on are funded by tumour specific donations and bequests to philanthropic organisations. I don't think anyone who has benefited from the McGrath Foundation would argue that the money wasn't well spent, but the costs of providing Cancer Liaison nurses for everyone seems to be making the bean counters baulk. My local health care service has included this in their 5 year plan, but I worry it will be unachievable unless there is a change in State and federal funding. Not looking likely at the moment. Marg