· Over 3,000 cancer patients in Gauteng are still waiting for radiation treatment at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital, some for more than four years.
· The Supreme Court rejected the department’s attempt to delay a court order demanding it act urgently to treat cancer patients.
Betty Maseko was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in 2020. Five years later, she still has not received the radiation treatment she needs.
The 37-year-old mother of two is one of more than 3,000 cancer patients on the waiting list for radiation at Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital in Johannesburg.
She first noticed a lump in her breast during a wellness day at work. A biopsy at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital confirmed it was cancer.
Doctors started her on six rounds of aggressive chemotherapy and referred her to Charlotte Maxeke for radiation.
“I completed my chemo and just needed radiation,” said Maseko. “But when I got to the hospital, I was told I was on a waiting list and they were prioritising patients with more deadly cancers like cervical cancer.”
Since then, her cancer has spread to the other breast. She has undergone chemotherapy two more times and is now living with stage four cancer.
“I had to quit my job because of the pain. I have lost all hope. What awaits me is a coffin because of the health department,” she said.
Non-governmental organisations Cancer Alliance and Section27 took the Gauteng Department of Health to court after years of delays in providing radiation treatment.
Earlier this year, the Gauteng High Court ruled in favour of the organisations. Judge Fiona Dippenaar said cancer patients were suffering “irreversible and permanent harm” because of the department’s failure to act.
She said the backlog meant patients were being denied treatment during the crucial window when radiation would still work. The situation had created a public health crisis, she said.
The department tried to delay the ruling by appealing to the Supreme Court of Appeal. But the court dismissed the appeal and ordered the department to comply.
The department must now urgently update and manage the backlog and make sure cancer patients get treated in time.
Pictured above: Poster by the Section27 and Cancer Alliance
Image Source: Supplied
