The British Columbia Government announced on Monday that it ends the program that sent some patients to the United States for radiotherapy.
The program, which started in May 2023, offered eligible patients the possibility of traveling for radiotherapy treatment in two Bellingham clinics, Washington. In order to access vital treatment.
However, the province says that at the end of February 2025, around 93% of patients in British Columbia were waiting for less than four weeks to start radiotherapy. This exceeds the national reference index of 90% and represents an improvement of 24% since spring 2023, while only 69% of patients started treatment within four weeks.
“Our priority has always been to make sure that cancer patients have timely access to vital treatment while we build and strengthen the British Columbia Public Health System,” Josie Osborne, Minister of Health in a statement said.
“By hiring more specialists, improving our hospitals and expanding innovative treatments, the British Columbia’s 10-year cancer plan aims to improve waiting times for radiotherapy and meet national references. Thanks to the progress we have made in the past two years, we can now finish this temporary program and focus on obtaining patients they need in BC “, we can now finish this temporary program and focus on the patients they need in BC.”
BC Cancer said they had a constant drop in the number of patients who choose to go to the United States for treatment.
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In total, 1,107 patients have completed radiation therapy in the United States via the program to date. At the top of the program, in the fall of 2023, there were an average of 50 patients treated in the United States each week.
Based on current participation rates, it is estimated that around 104 patients access the program during the coming year if it was to continue, according to a statement from the province.
This represents 0.6% of the 16,900 patients who should need radiotherapy in 2025-2010.
Nine patients should complete their treatment in the United States as part of the program before the end of contracts.
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