Fight against cancer: England is still lagging behind developed countries

England has not managed to bridge its gap with more successful countries in the treatment of cancer, despite its 20 years of attempts.

According to a Public Health Authority review of the government's balance sheet between 1995 and 2015, despite four strategies setting ambitious targets in this context, the British Health Authority is lagging behind the more developed countries.

The audit found that if services were better, 10,000 people could be saved each year.

The review emphasized the importance of early diagnosis.

Mike Richards, a former government expert in the fight against cancer, head of the team that prepared the review, warned patients that it was very difficult to obtain tests and analyzes.

"Although progress has been made, the goals of all these strategies have not been achieved," he said.

He pointed out that the number of missed opportunities to save lives equates to "the fall of a big plane with its passengers every two weeks".

This comes just a month after the British Prime Minister, Teresa May, promised that an early diagnosis of cancer would be a major priority of the National Health Service in the coming years.

How is the NHS delayed?

Survival rates improve: in 2000, 62% of patients remained alive for at least one year. In 2015, this figure had increased to 72%.

Meanwhile, the five-year survival rate has gone from 42% to 53%.

But other countries have also improved. The Health Foundation highlighted Britain's performance against five other countries: Canada, Australia, Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

The examination focused on six main types of cancer: the colon, the rectum, the breast, the lungs, the ovaries and the prostate.

In each of these species, the United Kingdom has been in the last two countries since 2000 with regard to the survival rate of cancer patients over the last five years. Britain has failed to bridge its gap with countries better than breast cancer.

The study found that 10,000 deaths could be saved each year with a better diagnosis, one in 13 deaths due to the disease.