Source: Daily Record
A LEADING doctor has questioned whether the cash-strapped NHS should continue to spend a fortune keeping terminally ill patients alive.
Dr Brian Keighley, chairman of the British Medical Association Scotland, said tens of thousands of pounds are spent on drugs to extend some cancer victims’ lives by just weeks or months.
He added: “We have to make a decision on some of the oncological treatments that have limited outcomes, remembering that 80 per cent of money is spent in the last three years of life.
“They must be looked at critically. We have to keep development and innovation and keep pressing the boundaries against the ravages of terminal illness.
“But, at the same time, we have to have some evidence base as to how appropriate it is to spend many thousands of pounds to prolong life for a matter of weeks or months.
Read More: Leading doctor: Should NHS spend millions keeping alive terminally ill patients for few weeks?
Cartoon by Bob Moran
