Episode 4: Cancer Care in Canada - A Disrupted System Needing Disruptive Innovation

While the number of new cancer diagnoses and deaths has risen significantly over the last decade, since early 2020, global cancer diagnoses rates have dropped by 40%. Safety protocols resulted in fewer patients being seen by practitioners, as hospitals and clinics were forced to prioritize patients’ care based on risk and need. This, coupled with delays in diagnostic imaging and fewer procedures being performed, has doctors worried about a wave of cancer patients in the wake of the pandemic.

As Canada continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and attempts to manage the consequences of delayed treatments and diagnoses, we cannot simply redirect our resources to mirror our pre-pandemic system. Issues with Canada’s health care system are not new; in the recently published Commonwealth Report, which looks at the performance of 11 healthcare systems, Canada ranked second to last. As such, we need to look to new and innovative ways to diagnose and treat cancer, so that the cancer care system is better equipped to work through its backlog - and is prepared for future health crises.

In this episode, Ross Wallace is joined by:

• Eva Villalba, Executive Director, Quebec Cancer Coalition

• Louise Binder, Health Policy Consultant, Save Your Skin Foundation

• Barry Stein, President and CEO, Colorectal Cancer Canada

Find the podcast below or listen on SoundCloud.