Editorial: Cancer care gap

Saturday, Dec. 22, 2007 | 7:30 a.m.

When it comes to fighting cancer, a new study says, people who don't have insurance are twice as likely to die within five years as those who have insurance.

The research, done by scientists with the American Cancer Society, highlights one of the most tragic disparities between health care's haves and have-nots.

Patients without insurance account for 4 percent of patients who die from cancer each year, the Associated Press reported last week.

Although that represents a small number of the 560,000 people who die of cancer in the United States each year, the cancer society's study says these uninsured people are less likely to obtain screenings that detect cancers in early stages. As a result, the disease is more likely to have spread or be in advanced stages when it is found.

Patients can obtain cancer treatment through Medicaid and other programs for the poor or uninsured. But enrollment in such programs often occurs after the cancer has been diagnosed, the report says. And early detection is key to increasing someone's chances for survival.

Even in cases in which the disease is found early, the study suggests that uninsured patients receive a lower quality of care than patients who have coverage.

A cancer diagnosis - even in its early stages - is a terrifying experience. For those who lack the money or health coverage to pay for adequate treatment, it is even more frightening.

The United States has made great strides in the areas of cancer detection, prevention and treatment. It is shameful, however, that millions of Americans have little hope of being allowed to take advantage of these advances simply because they lack health insurance.