The following letter has been sent out to candidates in the 2024 British Columbia Election. Scroll down for the response from the different parties and candidates.
The Canadian Cancer Survivor Network (CCSN) works to connect patients, survivors and other stakeholder groups with decision makers and the wider community to engage in discussion and to act on evidence-based best practices to alleviate the medical, emotional, financial and social costs of cancer and encourage research on ways to overcome barriers to optimal cancer care and follow-up for patients, caregivers and survivors in Canada.
In 2024, 31,800 people will be diagnosed with cancer in British Columbia, and 11,700 will die of it. The government of British Columbia has as critical role to play in making sure that the diagnosis of cancer, required testing, and treatment is provided to its citizens in a timely manner.
COVID-19 has caused major disruptions in cancer care – but cancer can’t be cancelled or postponed. The delay and cancellation of cancer care due to COVID-19 has triggered another public health crisis. Cancer care and diagnosis must continue during any public health crisis affecting Canadians to save lives.
- If elected, how will your government provide the explicit inclusion of essential cancer care in future waves COVID-19 and in all crisis and pandemic planning in the future?
In British Columbia, there is a shortage of clinics that provide essential supplemental screening, such as ultrasound, for women with dense breasts. Dense breasts make it harder for radiologists to spot cancer because both cancer and dense tissue appear white on a mammogram. A masking effect is created. For women with dense breasts, 2D or 3D mammography is not enough. It has been known for almost 30 years that ultrasound can find many of the cancers missed by mammography when they are still small and have not spread to lymph nodes. Early detection of breast cancer means a better prognosis, less aggressive treatment, better quality of life, and less cost to the healthcare system.
- If elected, will your government promote equitable and accessible care by increasing the number of local hospitals and community clinics that offer supplemental breast screening to women with Category C or D density?
In cancer care, systemic (drug) treatment decisions are no longer made solely based upon the tumour tissue of origin but are now informed by diagnosing the disease at the molecular and genomic level allowing clinicians to take a biomarker-informed approach to treating the disease with targeted and precision medicines (1). These therapies target a patient’s specific tumour biology and may offer better outcomes and reduce the risk of adverse effects, alongside a reduction in healthcare costs and greater efficiencies for healthcare systems. This can be achieved through precision medicines that are biomarker informed: Biomarker testing sits at the center of personalized medicine as it provides the necessary information to make individualized clinical treatment decisions for the metastatic patient population.
The 2024 BC Medication Coverage report by the Gastrointestinal Society (https://badgut.org/bc-public-medication-coverage/) reveals that BC funds the fewest medications among all provinces, denying essential care to those who need it the most. National bodies and most provinces have recommended these medications, except for British Columbia. For instance, between 2018 and 2023, British Columbia refused to cover 31 new, life-changing medicines, when Ontario declined only two and Alberta only three.
- If elected, will your government commit to increase public funding of new, life-changing medicines in British Columbia so medical treatment in British Columbia is equitable to all other provinces in Canada?
Currently in British Columbia, there are inequities related to timely access to biomarker testing and results, across cancer types. The top three concerns, as identified by a patient advocacy group roundtable discussion at the national 2023 Biomarkers Conference are: (i) lack of timely access to testing and reporting of results, (ii) lack of patient education, and (iii) intra- and inter-provincial disparities in access.
- If elected:
4a. What steps will your government take to uphold initiatives to advance precision oncology, more specifically, expanding patient access to biomarkers and testing capabilities?
4b. What action will your government take to implement practical improvements to current oncology care pathways so patients can access genetic tests, results and a searchable database of clinical trials available to them in a timely manner?
4c. What measures will your government take to accelerate the education of precision oncology to medical experts and patients?
DEFINITIONS:
- Biomarker: A biological marker which identifies a DNA/RNA mutation, alteration, protein, or other substance that provides information about an individual’s cancer.
- Biomarker Testing: Also known as molecular profiling, this looks for a handful of biological markers commonly expressed in the respective cancer type. Biomarkers are often tested after the tumour tissue has undergone initial pathology testing.
- Comprehensive Genomic Profiling (CGP): Also known as advanced biomarker testing, it is an approach for assessing most, if not all, clinically significant genes, mutations, alterations, proteins, or other substances to inform diagnosis, prognosis, treatment selection and to monitor therapeutic response.
- Precision Oncology: A personalized approach to treating an individual with cancer based on the specific genes, DNA/RNA mutations, alterations, proteins, or other substances present within their tumour (biomarker status) or their genes.
Your response will be circulated to cancer patients, caregivers and survivors in British Columbia and included on our website at www.survivornet.ca. Links to your responses will also be posted on Facebook and Twitter.
Thank you for your attention to these important issues!
Yours sincerely,
Jackie