British Ill Informed Over Relative Standards Of Cancer Treatment Within The EU

Survey reveals majority have no idea how UK survival rates compare

Seven-out-of-ten people think the standard of cancer treatment in the UK is good and just one in seven believe that we have one of the best survival rates in the EU¹, according to a MORI poll. The results reveal a startling discrepancy among the British public between their perception and the reality of cancer treatment in the UK.

In fact, Britain has one of the worst survival rates for bowel and breast cancer², significantly lower than average survival rates across a range of cancers³, and has had poor standards linked to low levels of spending on treatment⁴.

The nationally representative MORI poll of 2,000 adults aged 15 plus was carried out of behalf of CERT (Campaign for Effective and Rational Treatment)⁵, which is calling for the NHS to spend another 163170 million each year for cancer drugs.

In contrast to the facts, three in ten of those questioned thought that the UK generally had 'better' standards of treatment than other EU countries and the UK was thought on balance to have the joint fourth-best survival rate of the 15 EU countries. A third of those polled admitted that they didn't know how we compared.

Professor David Kerr, Professor of Clinical Oncology at Birmingham University, and a member of CERT's steering committee said: "These results are surprising. A significant proportion of the British public simply have no idea how much the UK is lagging behind many other parts of Europe. When it comes to cancer survival figures, British is NOT among the best and this survey shows that many people in Britain seem totally unaware of that. People should be aware how much more could and must be done to raise standards and improve survival - realistic drug budgets would be a good start, in concert with other initiatives which the Government is undertaking in the battle against cancer."

Views on which countries have the best survival records appeared to reflect national stereotypes rather than actual information. Answers revealed a belief that there was a north/south European divide over standards with Sweden and Germany thought tops for survival and Greece, Spain and Portugal thought bottom. Although the UK was rated joint fourth 'best', a small proportion - one-in-12 - rated it worst (giving it net ranking of fourth equal overall).

Perceptions differed between age groups and social classes. Over 45s - the age group most likely to suffer from cancer - had the most realistic view of UK survival rates with only 11 per cent thinking that the UK was best, compared with a quarter of under-25s. Just 12 per cent of ABs rated the UK best compared with 19 per cent of DEs.

There are also notable differences in attitudes to cancer treatment within the UK regions. Over 80 per cent of Scots thought highly of UK standards of treatment, compared with less than half of Londoners. In Great Britain overall, only 11 per cent rated the UK performance 'poor' but this rose to 17 per cent in London.

CERT spokesman Hugh McKinney said: "When we started collating data for our campaign we sensed that there was a credibility gap between what the public felt about UK standards of treatment and what was the reality. When the MORI results came in we were not too surprised that there was a gap."

"What did surprise, and frankly shock us, was the size of that gap. One in three of us is going to be affected by cancer at some point, so it's in everyone's interest that the NHS should allocate a realistic budget for cancer drugs. We simply cannot go on with a situation where patients are paying millions of pounds into a health service which then says it can't afford the few hundreds or thousand pounds necessary to give them the best treatment."

1. The UK was ranked equal fourth best out of fifteen countries behind Sweden, Germany and Denmark and was ranked on a par with France and the Netherlands.
2. World Health Organisation, - 1998
3. The Eurocare II study - European Journal of Cancer Supplement, Vol. 34. No 14, December 1998
4. 9th International Congress on Anti-Cancer Treatment, 2-5 February 1999, Paris, France
5. CERT (Campaign for Rational and Effective Treatment) is a patient-centred organisation campaigning for better treatment for people with chronic, debilitating or life-threatening diseases. More details available from a fact sheet: "Who are CERT?".

Technical details

MORI interviewed a representative quota sample of adults aged 15+. Interviews were conducted face-to-face, in-home across 158 sampling points across Great Britain. Interviews were carried out between 19 - 22 March 1999 and data are weighted.