Canadian Breast Cancer Network says Cameron Inquiry Report indicates huge system failure and calls for transparency and accountability with survivor involvement

 

"A huge system failure needs a huge system change that includes input from breast cancer survivors" is the unanimous response of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Breast Cancer Network (CBCN) to Justice Margaret Cameron's report released Tuesday in St. John's.

 

CBCN President Diana Ermel says: 'This is not a regional problem, it is a national one. The CBCN strongly supports the Cameron Report recommendation for not only provincial but national standards and would like to see actions and steps taken to implement systemic changes with uniform standards in Canada as a necessary step to begin to restore confidence in the medical system by women diagnosed with breast cancer and their families."

 

The CBCN has one additional recommendation to add to those in the Cameron Inquiry Report: that breast cancer survivors be included in any and all oversight bodies set up as a result of the inquiry, including any committee the Minister of Health may set up to follow-up on the Cameron Report recommendations.

 

Ermel says "The events that led to the inquiry in Newfoundland are a betrayal of trust for the women of Newfoundland and Labrador. For the 22,000 + women who will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year, these events are adding doubt about test results for women already facing enormous stress."

 

Breast cancer survivors on the Board of the CBCN wonder if the full extent of the damage to women with breast cancer in Newfoundland and Labrador will ever be known, and want to ensure that the experiences of Elizabeth Finlayson and others like her are never repeated again here in Canada. 

 

Elizabeth was repeatedly let down by medical personnel, who did not act on her test results and did not communicate with her even as the inquiry was taking place last year. The lack of integrity shown to her by medical personnel is simply inexplicable, especially given the awareness of the problems publicized throughout the Commission hearings. Says Ermel: "My heart goes out to all of the women and their families, who have suffered unnecessarily as a result of this tragedy."

 

There are more than 160,000 Canadian women alive today who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. Each year, there are 22,000 more newly diagnosed cases, and about 5,000 Canadian women die from breast cancer each year.  Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women, and one in nine women will be diagnosed with breast cancer over the course of their lifetime.

About CBCN

The Canadian Breast Cancer Network (CBCN) is the only national survivor-driven and survivor-focused organization in the breast cancer sector, and is the voice of breast cancer survivors in Canada. It represents the concerns of over 225 member organizations across Canada, as well as those of all Canadians affected by breast cancer and those at risk. The CBCN's main goals are to improve access to quality breast cancer care for all Canadians and expand the influence of breast cancer survivors in all aspects of the breast cancer decision-making process. For more information about CBCN, please visit www.cbcn.ca <http://www.cbcn.ca/> 

 

 

Jackie Manthorne

Executive Director/Directrice générale

Canadian Breast Cancer Network

Réseau canadien du cancer du sein

331, rue Cooper Street, Suite 300

Ottawa, ON K2P 0G5

613-230-3044 ext. 222

Fax/Téléc: 613-230-4424

1-800-685-8820

[log in to unmask]

www.cbcn.ca

 

 


To manage subscriptions/passwords, or view archives, go to http://listserv.yorku.ca/archives/click4hp.html . [log in to unmask] is run in collaboration with Health Nexus: http://www.healthnexus.ca/index_eng.php