is it worth it?

What report morgana? Can you do a link?

BBC News was where I saw the reports jane but I can't remember who wrote the actual report.

Apparently, the special cancer fund set up by David Cameron has wasted millions to very little effect - I imagine that is what morgana was referring to.

I think its very difficult to say this is wasted money if you are one of the cancer sufferers or their family, When life is at risk it becomes very precious. I think most of us would do anything to prolong our life or that of a loved one.
Decisions made about funding for treatment must require a great deal of thought, I would not want to do that.

It's a very tough one.When a close relative was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer with secondaries -never smoked - her oncologist told her categorically there was no cure, but a certain chemo tablet could buy her more time.She wanted that so badly to spend precious time with her grandchildren and family.A lot of the extra 6 months or so was spent feeling dreadful with chemo side effects,blisters everywhere, weeping eyes etc.Plus numerous 50 mile round trips to the oncology department.
Heaven knows what I would do in that situation. None of us do unless it happens.But DD and did both say maybe we would prefer to forgo the essentially experimental drugs and spend more time at home,or doing things we really wanted to plus enjoying our food -very important to us .Plus with a new grandchild I honestly think I would rather that money be spent elsewhere in the NHS if my prognosis was so poor.I hope that hasn't caused offence to anyone currently going through cancer treatment, or supporting a loved one.Just my oppinion, and as I say what choices would I make if offered them ?

I really do think it depends on personal circumstances and the quality of life during the extra time. Many of you know my DiL has secondary cancer and three young children if she was offered more quality time it would be worth every penny. However my poor MiL was resuscitate and spent three years in abject misery and died horribly. In retrospect it would have been kinder to her and us to have let her go quickly while her life was still happy and our memories of her were good. The NHS did no one real favours. I'm not blaming them but when I think about it when she went into cardiac arrest it was her time to go. We extended it artificially and we shouldn't have.

My Mum was given 3 weeks to live but could have radiation treatment to give her the chance another 2-3 weeks, she refused and i backed her decision. I dont see any point in spending very large amounts of money when you cant change the outcome.It may be harsh but we really cannot afford this kind of treatment.If a family want to pay it fair enough.

Wishing your daughter in law well, morethan. You have all been under so much pressure. I think you are spot on about quality time, for me it is the quality of time that is important, there is one high problem, though. No one one can predict accurately the outcome of treatment and can we blame anyone for trying to do their best for themselves, their patient or their family? I don't think you can legislate, treatment or no treatment, each individual is just that, individual.

Well if it was me (or you) morgana orvanynof my family, thosevthree months could be very precious indeed. It of course depends also on the quality of life during that time.
Time for a parent to prepare their children emotionally and practically for the future? Time to put one's affairs in order?
By all means.
Time to be hooked up to a life support system or to endure suffering the side effects of treatment? That's another matter.

I think it's ludicrous to expect a lot of money to be spent on three months extra Of course no one wants to lose their loved one but it has to be, we are all destined to die and we all need to accept what is given to us It should never be offered for such a short time The outcome is the same
Good on your Mum and you Grannypiper.

My mum didn't have cancer but when she had a massive heart attack at 90 years old and suffering 7 years of Alzheimer's no longer could talk, see hear or walk and I was asked if they should resuscitate her I said No it was hard very very hard but it wouldn't have been kind to her at all to give her another week or two of torment

Just because we can doesn't mean we should
I

I'm about to deal with it for my family by some very clear instructions in a health LPA. Easier to do while reasonably fit and healthy I think.

Three months for a parent to prepare a young child for death can be without price BlueBelle. I agree with MawBroon on that.
For me now I wouldn't want the extra time if it was very expensive or meant a poor quality of life. It's such a personal thing I don't see how we can generalise.

I do not think £millions were spent on any individual patient. I think the investigation showed that David Cameron's special cancer drug fund expenditure wasn't properly monitored so that while for some people the drugs they got did indeed extend their lives and keep them with a good quality of life, too many got no benefit at all from either extended life or better quality life

Yes, it was the special cancer drug fund. Saw it on TV. Of course it could be just the Govt. trying to cut costs again! If it were me, I would just want to be left to die. I keep telling my kids to take me to the vets when the time comes! I can understand that for someone younger, those precious few months could be worth the world. DD's friend tried every drug/operation imaginable over four years, but then she had a baby to raise and every day was precious for the family. Unfortunately she died a few weeks ago. She was a very brave lady.

When my mother was told she had incurable cancer and a short time to live, she finished her week at work, so her team did not lose its bonus. Then she discussed chemo which would have given a few more weeks but decided against that as it would had been such poor quality of life left.

A few parties and a holiday and she left this world, I think she made the right choice. I hope that I would do the same. I have seen so many friends worn to a stump by trying to keep loved one live in very difficult circumstances, the toll on them is remarkably high.

I have also done years of hospice fund raising work and frankly now find the movement a bit OTT, providing as it does these very expensive centres, almost spa like, when most people prefer to be at home.

I think along with NHS provisions the hospice movement needs to be more reaistic about how they spend the money raised, they do some excellent home care of course but the spend is huge.

I also found in the last shop where I worked staff (paid) were not well treated and I would hate to be on my death bed in luxurious surroundings, knowing that had been paid for by shoddy working conditions for staff.

It is so individual in every case.....but somehow we have to find ways to get it the closest to right that we can.

My husband and I have just finalised LPA's (both financial and medical) with our eldest daughter as our Attorney. They categorically state that we do not want to be artificially kept alive by machines or to be given any drugs, experimental or otherwise, that would keep us alive if the prognosis was inevitably terminal with the exception of pain relief. Our daughter was with us when we told the Solicitor what we wanted and she was relieved that we had made our feelings clear in the event that she was asked her opinion as our Attorney regarding extension of life.

Cameron was guilty of wasting a huge amount of public money for a short term political advantage just because he had some criticism in the red top newspapers. The evidence was not there to support his slush fund promising unicorns and fairy dust!I think that the enemy here is unfounded hope! The oncologists hold out the possibility of an extra 3 - 6 months of life. Don't forget that they are being rated on the survival times of their patients, not the quality of life. Some of them have more integrity than others. They are less forthcoming about the possible extreme misery of that extended life which thwarts the desire to spend time with grandchildren etc. I have been through this with my first husband who understandably wanted to be around for our teenaged daughters (bowel cancer, died aged 44) and a dear friend, who only caved in to the treatment because her husband was desperate for her to have it. What is needed is input from a Clinical Psychologist or End-of-Life counsellor to ask the important questions and help people define what is important for them in the time they have left. Given that is rarely available when the oncologist is offering these last ditch treatments, do people know that they can contact the Palliative Care Team directly? The Palliative Care Team are there to advise anyone who is likely to have less than 12 months to live.

Every circumstance is different. This is not one of those one size fits all. There should be some leeway, probably could be done by a group of unconnected lay people.

If it were myself, irrespective of circumstances, I'd say no thanks but for any member of my family or two soulmates I'd fight to the death.

This is the most difficult subject. My dear late husband had motor neurone disease and the one drug he could take helped to slow it down a bit - by a measly six weeks. I imagine this drug costs a good deal. Was it worth it?
Towards the last two weeks of his life he said that he'd had enough, that he couldn't bear it any longer, he stopped taking the tablets as he couldn't see that they were really helping by then.
Knowing that it's terminal with no cure is the worst thing. We were both on tenterhooks for months, not really wanting death but not wanting to suffer either. The hospice movement is worth its weight in gold and deserves more financial help.

It's about quality of life. The report claimed that the programme was not fit for purpose and was ill-thought out. Some patients benefitted and I am glad for them, but they were a relatively small percentage. The big winners were the drugs companies.

I too volunteer at a hospice, which provides counselling services for patients and families, support groups, day respite for carers, but the expensive drugs are not part of the hospice movement. However this area benefits also from the 'hospice at home' service, where patients and their families are supported day and night to have the death at home if that is their choice. Having been involved in independent research looking at overnight home care, the value of this to patients is immeasurable.

Hospice care receives extremely little funding from the NHS, about 11% if lucky, all the rest has to be raised from local donations and shops. I know where I would spend the money, rather than lining the pockets of drug company directors!

My friend's DBiL was given 9 months to live without chemo, which would give him an extra three months. He decided not to put himself through chemo and lived for 2 1/2 years. Her best friend has been in remission with pancreatic cancer for over two years, having been told she had tops 3 months to live.

How can you decide with so many imponderables, it seems such a lottery. I think I would prefer to die in a hospice, with palliative care and not put my family through horrible times trying to cope.

I agree Bluebell "just because we can doesn't mean we should".
I've always thought we should attach more importance to quality of life than quantity. An extra few weeks of extreme pain and misery? No thank you, I wouldn't want that for me or my nearest and dearest.
I think we should all be encouraged to make a living will and the doctors should have to respect that. The Hypocratic Oath was all very well in simpler times but idea of preserving life at all costs is no longer appropriate now that technology can do so much, including keeping you alive as a vegetable or when (as my husband puts it) you're not there any more.

I personally would prefer not to have treatment, the side effects are horrendous in many cases. I would prefer some quality of life.

My DH was diagnosed with terminal cancer, however he was too weak to withstand chemo or radio therapy so we didn't have to make the decision. He was given 8 months to live but sadly died just over 2 months later.

I believe age & family circumstances make a difference to the choice we & our family make.