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2021 was second year in a row with fewer cancer diagnoses due to Covid, report finds

1 in 12 expected cancers were not detected over the first 2 years of the pandemic, an estimated 4,320 cases.

THE NUMBER OF cancers diagnosed during the first two years of the pandemic fell by a total of 8%, according to a report from the National Cancer Registry of Ireland (NCRI) and funded by the Irish Cancer Society.

Preliminary data on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic indicates that the number of cancer cases diagnosed in 2021 was down 1,665 cases or 6% lower than projected. 

This is a smaller shortfall in diagnoses than the 10% observed in 2020.

The drop in cancers may have been caused by patients putting off seeking medical advice and disruptions to the health service, says the Irish Cancer Society.

Liver, pancreatic and kidney cancers appear to have been most significantly impacted by the disruptions that occurred due to Covid.

Director of advocacy at the Irish Cancer Society, Rachel Morrogh, said that the charity’s fears had been confirmed by the report.

“Cancer never went away during the pandemic but remained undetected due to a range of reasons including disruption to health services, people putting off seeking medical advice, and possibly premature death from Covid.”

“The combined number of missed cancers from 2020 and 2021 tell us that 1 in 12 expected cancers were not detected over the first 2 years of the pandemic.

“We don’t yet have the full picture of whether these cancers were diagnosed at a more advanced stage, but what we do know is that the later the stage of diagnosis, the more complex, more costly, and more invasive cancer is to treat.”

The combined number of diagnosed cancers during 2020 and 2021 was 4,320 lower than projected.

“Crucially, later diagnosis can impact a person’s chance of survival and their quality of life, so we are viewing the figures in the context that each number represents a family who tragically, may have less time with a loved one,” Morrogh continued.

“Our most recent omnibus survey from May found that 1 in 5 people have not attended a GP or hospital appointment in the last 3 months, even though they say they have needed to.”

“Roughly one-third have put off these appointments due to either the pressures in the health service or because they could not afford it.  Four in 10 adults in Ireland are not confident that they can access the health services they need at the current time.

“One in 5 are currently waiting for a health test, with 65% of these waiting longer than 4 months.”

In response to a request for comment by The Journal, the Department of Health highlighted that more cancer surgeries took place in 2022 than in 2019, following a drop in access to treatment due to the pandemic.

The National Cancer Strategy Implementation Report for 2022, launched yesterday, announced that the government had allocated €35 million in extra funding last year for cancer treatment and recruited 172 additional staff to cancer services.

The HSE stated:

“The National Cancer Control Programme Rapid Access Services offer a dedicated pathway to diagnosis for patients with suspected breast, lung and prostate cancer. These services aim to offer new patients an appointment within specified timeframes, and performance against these targets is measured on an ongoing basis.”

The NCCP has advised any person with symptoms that could indicate cancer to seek care without delay.

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    Mute james Goodyear
    Favourite james Goodyear
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    Oct 10th 2015, 9:32 AM

    Women don’t make good comediennes.

    63
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    Mute Lester Jeffcoat
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    Oct 10th 2015, 9:50 AM

    Says the over-thinking potato.

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    Mute Mjhint
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    Oct 10th 2015, 10:01 AM

    No actually Christopher Hitchens said it & done an article in Vanity Fair about the fact that evolution may have made men funny as they have to be for the purpose of mating whereas women don’t require the same tactic. After several rebuttals by women including several successful female comedians it appears they only managed to confirm his hypothesis.

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    Mute Aoife Barry
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    Oct 10th 2015, 10:13 AM

    James, you’re a gas man. Laughing my head off here at your witty joke!

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    Mute Beachmaster
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    Oct 10th 2015, 10:26 AM

    Oh now!

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    Mute little jim
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    Oct 10th 2015, 10:48 AM

    Boobies are not light entertainment, they have no need for cheap funbag jokes.

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    Mute Gavin Corrigan
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    Oct 10th 2015, 9:34 PM

    Similar to drivers, good women comedians are a minority

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    Mute catkins407
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    Oct 10th 2015, 9:36 AM

    Definitely” over thinking girl”. It’s a lot better than me. I struggle very much to read people and social situations so I end up being ” what inappropriate fecking thing did I say now ” woman. Lol

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    Mute Aoife Barry
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    Oct 10th 2015, 10:24 AM

    Glad I’m not alone in that C! I think we all have situations where we overthink – and it can be such a pain. Often it doesn’t do anything positive for us either.

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    Mute little jim
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    Oct 10th 2015, 10:45 AM

    Is overtalking a thing?

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    Mute Ronan Stokes
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    Oct 10th 2015, 11:14 AM

    Jo Brand is a brilliant comedian, doesn’t take any crap and knows how to deliver a good story. Similar dead pan style Jack Dee. Im not a fan of Sue Perkins style as I think its very one dimensional, for me it’s more of a “look how clever and witty I am”, as opposed to delivering something funny about life. Her style seems very approval seeking.

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    Mute Ruairi O'Hagan
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    Oct 10th 2015, 11:34 AM

    Great stuff Aoife! Looking forward to the next part!

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    Mute Aoife Barry
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    Oct 10th 2015, 11:41 AM

    Thanks so much R! :D

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    Mute dj
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    Oct 10th 2015, 9:43 AM

    Go on,tell us a joke.

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    Mute Michael Sands
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    Oct 11th 2015, 5:10 PM

    Enda and Joan are leaders of their parties in a government together, how’s that dj lol.

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    Mute Chauncey Gardiner
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    Oct 10th 2015, 12:23 PM

    Fair play to you Aoife! It takes courage to step out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself.

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    Mute Richard Cheney
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    Oct 10th 2015, 1:06 PM

    Jim Jefferies,Doug Stanhope,George Carlin,Bill Hicks – all highly recommended

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    Mute Uncle Monty
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    Oct 10th 2015, 5:12 PM

    Oh yes, I’ll add Louis CK.if you don’t mind. Doug Stanhope talking about the death of his mother is worth a watch…

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