MP supports ‘Secondary. Not second’ rate campaign

Local MP, David Rutley, recently met with Breast Cancer Care to hear about the charity’s campaign to ensure people with incurable secondary breast cancer get the best care possible.

Ahead of Secondary Breast Cancer Awareness Day, David attended Breast Cancer Care’s Parliamentary event – hosted by Sharon Hodgson MP, co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Breast Cancer – to meet women living with incurable breast cancer and call for improved support. This follows on from David’s visit to the Breast Cancer Care’s stand at Conservative Party Conference, where he first heard about the ‘Secondary. Not second rate.’ campaign and discussed the work that the charity has been doing to improve care.

The ‘Secondary. Not second rate.’ campaign draws attention to the 21% of people who previously had breast cancer and were first treated by their GP for another condition, alongside the 42% who do not feel their overall care was well-managed and well-coordinated. Additionally, the campaign seeks to highlight that 47% of hospitals are not fully collecting data on the number of people diagnosed with incurable breast cancer. Breast Cancer Care believes that this incomplete data is one of the major barriers to urgently needed improvements in poor care. As a result, not all people living with incurable breast cancer are not getting the care and support they need.

Danni Manzi, Head of Policy and Campaigns at Breast Cancer Care, says: “We are extremely grateful to David for joining us ahead of Secondary Breast Cancer Awareness Day to show his support for our ‘Secondary. Not second rate.’ campaign, improving care for incurable secondary breast cancer patients. There are still gaps in care for people with incurable breast cancer and consistent data collection is essential to enable crucial services and support to be planned effectively for people living with the disease. We are calling on the Government, Public Health England and NHS England to do all they can to ensure everyone with incurable breast cancer gets the best care possible.”

David said: “It is vital that during Breast Cancer Awareness Month, people with incurable breast cancer are not forgotten, and in the future everyone diagnosed and living with the disease should be counted so that they can get the support they need. I would like to thank Breast Cancer Care for their hard work in drawing attention to this issue, and I will continue to support this campaign in the future.”