Campaigners receive big response to cancer petition (Derby City Liberal Democrats)

Derby City Liberal Democrats <info@derbycitylibdems.org.uk>

Campaigners receive big response to cancer petition

May 31, 2006 1:41 PM

Dr Deirdre Mitchell outside Derby City Hospital with some of the petition responses

There has been a huge response to the Lib Dems petition calling for the cancer drug Herceptin to be prescribed to all patients who need it

A petition run by two Derby Liberal Democrat Councillors calling for the cancer drug Herceptin to be prescribed nationwide to women who need it has received a big response.

The petition was organised and run by Dr Deirdre Mitchell, a Councillor and former director of cancer services in Derby and Cllr Wendy Harbon who is a carer by profession. It calls for Herceptin to be prescribed to all women who need it across the country.

The drug Herceptin has been shown to greatly improve people's chances of surviving a form of breast cancer called HER2 if prescribed in the early stages of breast cancer. This form of breast cancer affects about a fifth of people who have the disease.

Cllr Deirdre Mitchell said "Herceptin has recently begun to be prescribed to women in Derbyshire who need it. This is good news. However, there are still many places in the country where Herceptin is not prescribed. Almost everyone in Derby will have family and friends living in parts of the country where Herceptin is not yet readily available to women who need it. People are concerned that friends and family in other parts of the country may not get this important drug if they need it. That is why our campaign is so important.

"Unfortunately under this Labour government there is still a "postcode lottery" in the NHS. The standard of care you receive often depends upon where you live. I and the rest of the Liberal Democrats want good quality healthcare for people regardless of where they live in Britain."

The petition has been signed by almost 700 people in Derby. The petition is part of a national campaign being run by Liberal Democrats across the country. Cllrs Mitchell and Harbon have sent their petitions to Steve Webb MP, the Liberal Democrat Health spokesperson. The full petition from all over the UK will be presented to the Secretary of State for Health.