The bill for cancer in England is £18.33 billion annually, according to new figures that take into account healthcare costs, costs to patients and families and losses in productivity. The report, The Cost of Cancer, is released today by think tank Policy Exchange, and finds that these costs are set to increase to £24.72 billion over the next ten years. This is the most comprehensive study of the total costs of cancer to have taken place in England.

Despite a significant reduction in mortality since 1990, the UK's rate still remains some 6% higher than the European average, and progress in closing the gap in performance with other countries has not been made. UK spending on cancer medicines is only about 60 per cent of that recorded in other advanced European countries. Overall, England spends 5.6 per cent of its public healthcare budget on cancer, compared to 7.7 per cent in France, 9.2 per cent in the US and 9.6 per cent in Germany.

If survival rates were improved in England to a level commensurate with the best in Europe, the savings - both in terms of lives and costs to society - would be huge. The report finds that on a cumulative basis by 2020, total costs could be reduced by £10 billion, and 71, 500 lives could be saved.

Henry Featherstone, head of Policy Exchange's Health Unit and author of the report, said:

"Cancer kills over one in four people in England, and is seen by the public as being the top disease priority for the NHS. The current cost of cancer - to say nothing of the human tragedy involved - are currently at a staggering £18.33bn, and will only rise further.

"Over the next ten years, tens of thousands of lives could be saved by improving cancer care to levels on a par with the best European countries. With cross programme action on earlier diagnosis, and better targeting of resources towards older people and communities who are most at risk we could make significant reductions in mortality rates, saving not only billions of pounds, but also the upset and suffering caused to thousands of individuals and families."

The report highlights late diagnosis, poor survival rates for older people and those in deprived communities, and relatively poor take up of new treatments and technologies as being the most likely causes behind the UK's comparatively high mortality rate. The report recommends:

• The Department of Health should identify and adopt the best practice in cancer services from high- performing European countries.
• The Department of Health should focus resources where largest reductions in mortality can be achieved - including earlier diagnosis and improvement in treatments for older people and those in deprived communities.
• Focus on prevention strategies, including smoking reduction initiatives

The full report can be found here: The cost of cancer 

Source: Policy exchange