This report shows that between 2009 and 2012, 85% of the planned budget has already been spent and among the 118 actions planned and initiated, 60% have already been carried out or will be carried out by the end of this year.
“ A thousand new cases of cancer are diagnosed daily in France and four hundred people die from it every day. While the incidence of cancer has increased over the past thirty years, mortality has declined thanks to therapeutic advances and the impact of earlier diagnoses. The prospects in terms of cure and long-term survival are evolving very favorably but with big differences according to the types of cancer and always strong repercussions in the life during and after the disease for the sufferers and their relatives.», Recalls Dr Jean-Yves Grall, Director General of Health.
This plan has strengthened the quality and safety of care throughout the country. Organizations have been adapted for the care of children with cancer, elderly patients and people with rare cancers. The plan has also embarked on new avenues to support therapeutic innovations and advance research, particularly in the field of cancer genomics.
Access to personalized medicine and participation in clinical trials have also increased.
More and more patients are benefiting from targeted therapies accessible regardless of the place of care. The continuation of these programs will make it possible to optimize the therapeutic strategies by targeted therapies.
Despite the measures taken to combat tobacco, tobacco consumption has not declined. It is the leading cause of cancer-related death in France, and has not decreased. It contributes significantly to inequalities, increasing among women and among the unemployed.
Efforts should also be made to better understand the inequalities in the face of cancer and to act more effectively to reduce them. As such, the announcement of a new Cancer Plan should make it possible to strengthen the prevention of the main cancer risk factors, including tobacco, and to consider new strategies to improve the effectiveness and access to screening for cancers.
Imaging equipment for cancer diagnosis and monitoring has been developed (33 additional MRI machines installed). But this dynamic should be continued in order to reduce the time taken to access exams. The medical workforce in training has increased, with an increase in the number of interns in oncology-radiotherapy (more than 26% between 2008 and 2012) and in anatomopathology (by 48%), which should be accompanied by an increase in hospital posts. – academics in disciplines related to cancer.
“ The lessons learned from ten years of collaborative work in the field of cancer will help design the new Cancer Plan with the objectives of consolidating the advances made and committing to new actions in order to make further progress in the face of cancer. »Concludes Dr Jean-Yves Grall, Director General of Health.
Source: Ministry of Social Affairs / cancer plan
