Surgery and radiotherapy are effective for curing some cancers early on but many patients in the advanced stages are given expensive drugs in the hope of prolonging life. Is too much money spent in researching cancer drugs and too little on surgery, radiotherapy and preventing cancer?
There has been much hype from drug companies, doctors and the media who believe advanced cancer patients should have access to these late stage drugs. Though the NHS foots the bill for patients in the UK, many in the US have spent thousands of dollars on treatments.
Have you or a family member with metastatic cancer be given drugs in the hope of extending life? Do you feel that they should always be given, or was there a cost to quality of life? If you’re a cancer clinician, we’d like to know if you think too much money is spent on research into cancer drugs. Do you believe drug company budgets are skewing research too far in favour of drugs when research is needed in other areas? How do you think this can be changed?
You can share your experiences by filling in our form below. There will be additional questions depending on the option you choose. All responses will be kept confidential and some will be used in our ongoing reporting.
