General Chat

Just adds to my view that we are now a '3rd world country'. We cannot fund such things as drugs for our own people yet we keep taking in immigrants and spending huge amounts on benefits for them. Money is wasted by the govenrnment on huge IT schemes which always fail to perform and our armed forces are starved of funding. We have MPs seemingly fiddling expenses etc etc. What a sad, sick place this country is.

I too think this is disgusting and hope I never need drugs which won't be allowed due to cost!

I don't think it is fair tho to say that people with lung cancer have inflicted it on theirselves by smoking etc as there have been many cases of people being killed by passive smoking causing their cancer, eg. Roy Castle.
Similarly people might be ignorant of what eating a high fat diet can do, not right to say there stomach cancer is self inflicted. There is more to it than that!

Lizxxx

sounds like a good idea CMD - I feel a letter coming on!!!!!!

I have always thought it a good idea to put charity boxes in hospitals....then folks could donate spare change or foriegn coins whatever on their visits,,, I bet they would take a fortune...


Good night
cmd

Neither do I Ann. I feel as strongly about this kind of thing as you do.
I have worked in the NHS, and know the money that is wasted.
Must go to bed now, as I got hossie in the morning, so nite nite to you, and anyone else looking in.

Vicky xx

Hi there Vods - I just wish someone would tell us why drugs are so expensive - I mean aspirins are cheap as chips - probably if they were discovered today they would be expensive - just don't understand the reason for it

Was waiting for your response on this Ann, as I know how strongly you feel about it.
I agree that those in power would want the drugs if them or their loved ones needed them.

But then, they have the money to pay for them, and as usual it is the everyday person who has to suffer.

In Wales it's a postcode lottery - on the Welsh TV news this evening they cited the case of one sufferer in mid-Wales and one in North Wales. The one in mid-Wales can have the treatment cos his local health board is paying for it. The North Wales one was refused, so he upped sticks and moved in with his daughter who lives in Chester and he gets it there instead. It's an absolute disgrace and I'd like to know why these drugs are so expensive - is it the ingredients? I cannot believe it is. Is it the cost of the research? or is it more likely the drug companies making a fast buck out of peoples' misery. When I worked at our local psychiatric hospital I organised two summer fetes and wrote off everywhere for raffle prizes for a mega raffle. Everyone was extremely generous except the drug companies. I wrote to every drug company who supplied our hospital - nearly a hundred and only one gave me a raffle prize. All the others either didnlt respond at all or said they couldn't afford it!!!

I am evil about it and if the people in NICE who have made this ruling suffered from kidney cancer, or their loved ones did, I am sure they would have a different view point. And if health authorities stopped wasting money on non- essential items such as changing their headed paper and scrapping the existing, which happens over and over again - believe me I know - that would save some money. I could go on but you'll probably nod off!!!

they tell us all the time give us more money so we can find a cure we give to charity they find a drug that will help the people that are so ill yet some goverment run body says no you can not have the drug it is not cost effective to the tax payer any tax payer who had this illness would want the drug .i say people are dying never mind the cost give them the drug.

Englanf and Wales ban, as far as the news said.

Thanks for your good wishes ladies, he didn't waste time when he was inside, took several exams and got cetificates both for manual and technical,things the only problem now is finding something when so many are out of work and with his background it's difficult, fostered then a druggie doesn't go down well at interviews.

sorry for ignorance...but was this a total ban....or a post-code ban??

sorry janet but i would much rather spend£25000 to prolong a decent persons lif than spend £3.50 a month an someone who has become addicted to drugs
Love Jackie

Why would I be offended? I wish you're foster son all the best. I hope he stays clean and finds the life he deserves.

MB. Well done to your foster son. No doubt having you stand by him has made it easier for him. I wish him all the best for the future, and hope someone will give him a chance to prove himself.

No offence meant Janet, my now 38 year old foster son, doesn't live with us since he was 18 and left of his own choice, is a drug addict, have attended re-hab centers, and more prisons than I like to mention. He is clean now, but still labelled an addict and we still love him and he says that our sticking with him helped the most. We visit him at his home an hour's drive away and he knows we are there for him. He knows my feelings on self inflicted probs and accepts them.

I couldn't make the decision to deny someone a drug they needed however I know there is a limited pot from which these funds come from.

So what is the answer?

Please don't think I am saying that cancers are self inflicted. (Obviously some are, Lung cancer in smokers, stomach and throat in drinkers, bowel in those on a high fat, low fibre diet)

Forgot to say that Avastin is one of the drugs concerned.

Agree with some of your points Janet.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and no offence is meant to anyone.

But most cancers are not self-inflicted.

While I agree that these drugs should be available the cost to the health service for Avastin is in the region of £25000 for the 6 months it will prolong a life.

As for Methadone, at aproxiamately £3.50 a month it is good value. Think of the amount of crime that is connected to drug abuse and you'll understand my reasoning.

If we start along the path of denying Methadone to addicts how long before we stop treating overweight people who develop type 2 diabetes, smokers, social drinkers and eventually anyone who doesn' t "Conform"