KUALA LUMPUR – The waiting period for newly diagnosed cancer patients to receive treatment should not be more than a month after diagnosis, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Dzulkefly Ahmad.
Despite the challenges posed by the increasing number of cancer patients, he assured that the ministry has implemented effective mechanisms.
These mechanisms include referring cancer patients from government health clinics to the hospital for timely and necessary treatment.
“If an individual is diagnosed with cancer, our specialists at the health clinics will refer them to the hospital, and it will depend on the severity and the medical emergency of the case.
“If there is an indicated cancer diagnosis, the patient will receive immediate treatment.
The maximum wait time they may experience is one month,” he said at a press conference after the launch of the National World Cancer Day 2024 event here today.
Health director-general Datuk Dr Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan, who was also present at the press conference, added that cases requiring urgent treatment would receive care the very next day.
Quizzed about the alleged extended wait times for cancer patients as claimed by netizens, Radzi responded: “Supposedly, not at all. We have equipped our facilities, and our staff in health clinics (would) refer (the cases) directly to us. Supposedly, no”.
This is contrary to a statement by the National Cancer Society Malaysia managing director, Dr M. Murallitharan who said that cancer patients would have to endure a wait of several months for treatment due to a shortage of specialists and the limited availability of public healthcare facilities providing oncology services.
He also went on to say that securing appointments for a CT scan, biopsy, and immunohistochemistry tests could potentially require up to six months in government hospitals.
Meanwhile, Dzulkefly said that there are currently nine public hospitals in Malaysia offering oncology services.
To decrease waiting times for cancer patients, the ministry has collaborated with private hospitals and university hospitals under the Higher Education Ministry, he added.
Furthermore, Dzulkefly said the ministry is actively expanding the number of satellite radiotherapy centres, particularly in Sabah and Sarawak, this year.
He said that the burden on hospitals related to cancer patients has been steadily increasing over the past few years. Within five years from 2017 to 2021, a total of 168,822 new cancer cases were recorded, with the most prevalent types being breast, colorectal, lung, lymphoma, and liver.
“We aim to ensure a comprehensive national approach, involving all stakeholders, including non-governmental organisations and the private sector, rather than relying solely on the Health Ministry.
This effort is crucial to achieving a national recovery and leaving no one behind.“We want all Malaysians to have access to screening, treatment, and care services for cancer cases,” he added. – February 17, 2024