Cancer Focus makes final plea for people of Mid-Ulster to support equal access campaign

Roisin Foster, Cancer Focus NI with cancer patients Allister Murphy and Gary Vint (R) make a final call to the NI public to support the charitys Equal Access campaign, before 7th October when it will be presented to Stormont. The campaign calls for local patients to get the same access to 40 life extending cancer drugs as patients in England. Visit www.equalaccessni.org to back the campaign.

To date only 700 pledges for the charity’s Equal Access campaign have been made from the Mid Ulster area.

Cancer Focus NI Chief Executive, Roisin Foster, said: “There are currently 40 cancer drugs available to patients in England that are not readily available to patients in Northern Ireland. Every year there are 500 patients here who could benefit from these specialist drugs. The aim of the campaign is to do away with this obvious inequality to ensure that the most effective drugs will be made available to local cancer patients in their time of need.

“There has been great support for our campaign right across Northern Ireland: we have received 16,000 pledges of support to date but still need your help to reach our 20,000 target. If you haven’t yet pledged your support please visit www.equalaccessni.org before 7th October when we will present the campaign to Stormont. Our hope when we present the campaign to Stormont on 7th October is that the level of support demonstrated by the NI public will persuade our politicians to act without further delay.”

Mrs Foster added: “Unfortunately there are very few people who have not been touched by cancer. We’re calling for the public to back our Equal Access campaign. Visit www.equalaccessni.org before 7th October.