Bid to get political backing for local radiotherapy unit

Friday 10 December 2021

States Members are being asked to back Jersey having its own radiotherapy unit to treat cancer patients.

Deputy Montfort Tadier has lodged a proposal asking the Assembly for its support, and to instruct the Health Minister to come back with options by next April on how it could be set up.

Around 150 patients from Jersey receive radiotherapy in the UK each year, though some patients choose not to undergo that treatment due to the difficulties of travel and separation from their families.

Deputy Tadier's proposition is designed to put into effect the request of an official petition which was launched on 2 November by cancer survivor Rose Shepherd, which has attracted almost 3,000 signatures.

In her petition, Mrs Shepherd said: “Jersey desperately needs a radiotherapy unit. It can service the whole Channel Islands. Patients who travel for treatment are put up in an apartment. 

“This can be very lonely if one is feeling unwell and unable to get out and about. Not everyone is able to have someone with them. You also have to cook your own meals. Again, not everyone is well enough to do this.”

Having spoken to Mrs Shepherd and other cancer patients, Deputy Tadier pledged to ask his fellow politicians to back her call.

Pictured: Cancer survivor Rose Shepherd launched an online petition which prompted Deputy Tadier (top) to lodge his proposition.

He said: “While there may be common experiences for everyone, how people respond to a diagnosis and any subsequent treatment will be very subjective. 

“It is clear that all of those I spoke to were generally very grateful for the treatment they received from health care professionals in Southampton or beyond. 

“But, on many occasions, the experience of travelling, being away from work, family their own homes, was very difficult, and may not have been conducive to helping with recovery.”

Deputy Tadier’s proposal does not suggest site for the unit nor does it detail costs; rather, the St. Brelade representative says he wants to initiate a wide-ranging debate on the issue.

Appealing to fellow politicians, he said: “While it is right questions of feasibility, cost and location are all considered, I would ask Members when considering this proposition, to keep at the forefront of their mind that we are talking about real patients, now and in the future, all over the island. 

“This is something that will affect people in all our constituencies, as cancer does not discriminate. 

“Where there is discrimination, is between conditions. For most conditions, treatments are available and provided on island. But cancer is not one of them (not for radiotherapy). 

“How would we feel if our loved ones had to travel to the UK for hip operations, for example? Even if it were cheaper to do so, and it they were seen by top specialists, I suspect this would still be unacceptable to most of us.”

His formal proposal includes testimonies from islanders who have had to travel to the UK for treatment, their relatives, and as a healthcare professional.

The latter told him: “Patients who have advanced cancer that has spread to the bones often experience excruciating pain. 

Pictured: Most patients needing radiotherapy have to fly to Southampton for treatment.

“These patients are often referred to Southampton by the palliative care team or oncology team for radiotherapy to help ease the symptoms. 

“This is usually only one or two sessions. These particular people are very ill indeed. Travelling to Southampton for palliative radiotherapy is problematic, stressful, and extremely tiring. 

“These patients often know that the time they have left is limited, and going to Southampton is precious time away from loved ones.”

The Government has previously said that it is not against a radiotherapy unit in Jersey but it needs to be properly studied. 

Last month, Health Minister Deputy Richard Renouf told the Assembly that he had commissioned a full business case study “to give greater certainty around the potential costs and the operational needs of running the service in Jersey.”

Previously, it was assumed that cooperation with Guernsey was key to make the unit viable but the Deputy said that other options were being explored.

In a response to the petition this morning, he said that the business case would be complete at the end of March 2022.

He added, however, that even if a radiotherapy service were on offer in Jersey in future, "some patients would still need to be referred for treatment in the UK, including patients being treated for head and neck cancers."

"This is because the treatment of those cancers is very specialist and therefore must be provided in a specialist centre," he explained.

“We want patients to get their treatment on-island where possible, but we need to make sure that treatment is safe and resilient, it is high quality and the outcome for patients is as good as anywhere else. “