Doorstep chemotherapy delivery key during pandemic

Up to 10,000 chemotherapy home deliveries were made over three months at the peak of the coronavirus outbreak, avoiding the need for patients to venture out and risk infection when their immune system was low.

The drops are part of the coronavirus-friendly treatments introduced in response to the pandemic which have helped to ensure that 85,000 people could start treatment between March and June. NHS staff, including community nurses and pharmacists, and volunteers have been dropping off the life-saving medication.

NHS England says that data is showing referrals beginning to recover to pre-pandemic levels, although a number of health bodies still fear that people are scared to seek help because of the risk of infection.

Chemo deliveries increased by 46 per cent during the pandemic in Dudley alone with 440 treatment packages sent to patients’ homes and almost 900 were sent to people with cancer in Torbay. In south London, Guys and St Thomas’s NHS Trust have been carrying out up to 500 deliveries a month.

Hospitals have also significantly increased the use of chemo at home, with local pharmacy teams and community nurses providing the service to reduce cancer patients’ risk of exposure to the virus. NHS England is spending £160 million on drugs that mean patients do not have to go to hospitals for regular checks and treatment.

Dame Cally Palmer, director of cancer for the NHS in England said: “NHS staff have treated more than 108,000 patients requiring specialist hospital care for COVID-19 while also keeping other vital services such as cancer, maternity and A&E running throughout the pandemic. The NHS has also fast tracked modern, more convenient services that help to keep patients and staff safe – from video consultations to chemotherapy delivered to patients’ doors – that have allowed 85,000 people to start cancer treatment during the pandemic.”