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An Auckland woman's wait for radiation therapy is expected to be double what her cancer specialist told her was normal.
"Susan", who spoke out in Tuesday's Herald over the ballooning delays in starting radiation therapy for many cancer patients at the Auckland District Health Board, said yesterday that it now appeared her wait would be 15 weeks.
Her radiation oncologist had told her that starting within six to eight weeks after surgery was usual. The 55-year-old, who asked that her real name be withheld, had a partial mastectomy for breast cancer on July 1.
The Auckland DHB has resumed sending patients to Australia for radiation therapy and is also sending some to Waikato Hospital - because its waiting times for patients of "lower acuity" have risen to at least 12 weeks from the decision to use radiation.
It attributes the increase to breakdowns of the radiation machines, a big rise in patients needing urgent care, and staff losses exceeding recruitment.
That includes five of its therapists being hired by New Zealand's first private radiation therapy clinic in Epsom, which is scheduled to commence treatment in November.
Susan said the excessive wait was giving her fears her cancer might recur. Radiation therapy is intended to kill cancer cells not removed by surgery.
"Is this lowering my chances of a full recovery? If I had it at six weeks, would my chances be much higher than having it at 15 weeks? It's always a worry."
The Auckland DHB declined to comment on the risks of increasing delays, referring the question to the Ministry of Health.
The ministry's principal adviser on cancer control, Dr John Childs, a radiation oncologist, said that for lower-acuity patients being treated after breast cancer surgery, the risks of a localised recurrence did increase slightly when delays extended beyond 12 weeks after surgery, but the research data were rather "loose".
"What's been published suggests that if you have treatment within 12 weeks of surgery there's no clear evidence of a problem.
" ... once you get beyond 12 weeks there may be some slightly increasing risk."
Dr Childs said that while the ministry's "health target" was that lower-acuity patients should start radiation therapy within less than six weeks of the decision to use the treatment, down from less than eight in 2007/08, its clinical guideline remained within four weeks.
Susan's husband, "Jack", said he would need to accompany her to Hamilton for the four weeks of therapy sessions, although it would be disruptive since they were both self-employed.
"Think carefully, Auckland. You can't rely on public health treatment when it's needed," he said.
Another patient who has agreed to be treated in Hamilton said the accommodation looked "pretty dismal" and she was likely to be out of pocket because she could not work and might have to pay some costs.
