Oncology patient organizations appeal to the President of the European Commission on the KPO issue

Malignant tumors are the most common cause of death among adult Polish women and men. Epidemiological forecasts indicate that one in four Polish citizens will develop cancer, and one in five will die from the disease. As Dorota Korycinska notes in a letter to the President of the European Commission, the effectiveness of oncological care in Poland is low. According to studies, the 5-year survival rate of oncology patients is more than a dozen percentage points lower than in other European countries. For years, the environment of patient organizations has recognized the need for reforms to reverse unfavorable epidemiological trends, and has been seeking appropriate action from decision-makers.

One of the courses of action that could help improve the situation in oncological care in Poland is the implementation of a model of coordinated oncological care based on the National Oncology Network. The project's premise of concentrating curative treatment and dispersing complementary treatment aroused widespread agreement. However, as the patient organization community notes, the proposed model concentrated most of the decisions and management mechanisms in the hands of mono-profile oncology centers and introduced methods of supervising the implementation of oncology care on a conflict of interest basis. In addition, there is still no plan for implementing this reform. The president of the National Federation of Oncology also points to concerns about the piloting of the oncology network, pointing out, among other things, delays in the publication of the report on its implementation.

As a result of decisions made and abandoned, and in view of the milestones inscribed in the National Reconstruction Plan, a situation may arise in which decisions on key reforms for Polish oncology care will be implemented without a public discussion of their piloting. Moreover, to date, IT solutions have not been implemented to standardize treatment and quality monitoring at the centers.

The implementation of the National Oncology Network in its current form and based on the milestones inscribed in the NOP is fraught with great risk for the more than one million Polish patients who currently receive oncology diagnosis and treatment. The idea of coordinated oncology care is absolutely right, and the examples of many European countries show that its proper implementation can bring very good results. The key, however, is precisely the right implementation. We should use the proven solutions and good experiences of other countries to introduce reforms that will improve the situation of patients, and not put them at risk. That is why it is so necessary to discuss milestones and make appropriate changes to the National Recovery Plan," said Dorota Korycinska, CEO of the National Oncology Federation.

Source: press mat.