An oncologist has welcomed yesterday's announcement of funding for more cancer treatments, but warns the health system needs the professionals to help deliver them to patients.
It comes after the Government announced up to 26 new cancer treatments will be funded as part of the $604 million boost over four years. Up to 54 new medicines are part of the overall package.
Speaking to Breakfast, oncologist Dr Christopher Jackson said while announcement is "fantastic" and a massive investment in Pharmac, it would be a “tragedy” to offer more drugs without the nurses or doctors to deliver them.
“There are many cancer units around New Zealand - Auckland, Christchurch and other big cities whereby there are already waiting lists.
"When you create 26 new treatments for people, you’re that means there’s going to be an awful lot more people to treat, which means there’s a real risk if we don’t get the staffing funding for that.
"But the cancer waiting lists are going to grow in six, nine, 12 months' time ... we may well have a new problem to solve."
The types of drugs becoming available are taken orally or intravenously.
When asked if these drugs still require resources, Jackson said there is a “myth” which assumes cancer drugs don’t need much – which is "just not true".
"If you have a cancer pill, you still need a pharmacist to handle that, some of the drugs require very special handling, you still need a pharmacist to handle and supply those, you still need doctors to monitor and oversee them, you still need scans to monitor the progress.
"Cancer drugs, even if they are taken by mouth, can still have significant side effects that require management."
Intravenous drugs required management from nurses.
Jackson said dozens of people in his clinic have been waiting on "tenterhooks" for the announcement, as the new drugs could potentially help extend their lives.
"What that means is people who are affected today may still not be in good shape [when the drugs become available] later in the year, so there is definitely a degree of urgency for that."
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told Breakfast today: "We've also put aside a contingency of money for Health NZ and also for Pharmac to make sure they can operationalise the procurement and support of delivering these drugs, so that money also follows this announcement as well."
'Life changing' – patient
Theresa Zame, who has stage four lung cancer, said her treatment was costing her $1000 per month. She was importing it from Bangladesh.
Her treatment will now be covered under the new funding.
“It is life changing for us,” she said.
“We don’t have to worry about getting the medication from overseas, it just helps us so much and alleviates the stress and pressure.
“There’s a real guilt thing that goes along when you’re ill. You feel guilty for being ill, you feel guilty for what you’re doing to your family, you feel guilty for the cost that you’re putting on your family.
“It’s hard enough when you’ve got a terminal illness, but all the extra guilt, it’s nice to not have to worry about that.”
'Took a bit longer than we'd wanted' – Luxon
Speaking on Breakfast, Christopher Luxon also said he understood there were "major workforce challenges" in the health sector that would deliver these medicines. (Source: Breakfast)
Speaking to Breakfast this morning, Luxon said the announcement was delivered in a different way than originally proposed but said the "outcome is even better".
"It took a bit longer than we'd wanted it. We couldn't do it in time for the Budget, but we've now done it, and importantly, we've done it in a much bigger way."
Asked whether this announcement was "catch-up politics" as a result of public backlash, Luxon said: "No, not at all.
"Of course, there is more that we could do and there's a lot more we'd love to do but we need to make sure we get a better economy in place to be able to afford more of the public services to be available to New Zealanders, but this is a fantastic start."
Asked whether there were enough healthcare staff to administer the resources, Luxon said he understood there were "major workforce challenges" in the health sector.
"We've also put aside a contingency of money for Health NZ and also for Pharmac to make sure they can operationalise the procurement and support of delivering these drugs, so that money also follows this announcement as well.
"We've made some pretty good progress around nurse recruitment, and we need to continue that. There is more work to do in the healthcare system."
Cancer treatments are among 54 new drugs funded by the Government, but there’s a shortage of oncologists. (Source: 1News)
He said it was a "complex system" and the Government would need to ensure the system is "delivering for [staff] that work in it and also delivering for patients in New Zealand."
"We've got provisions against Budget 2025, we've also got contingencies to work with through the course of this year and a series of savings that will continue to have each and every day in Government.
"We'll continue to look for that, we'll continue to reprioritise money out of the bureaucracy and into the frontline."
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