Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Wakefield for his question. I know he is particularly interested in the latest information about cancer statistics across the country. I was recently in his electorate to make an announcement about our regional cancer services that are providing chemotherapy in Clare and in Gawler, both in his electorate, and also about a new linear accelerator at the Lyell McEwin Hospital, so I know that he, along with many others in the House, would have been interested to see in the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s report today that unfortunately the rate of cancer, and the diagnosis of cancer, is growing in our country. Unfortunately it shows us that we can expect, this year, that 115,000 Australians will be diagnosed with cancer, a 10 per cent increase on the figures from 2006. The good news is that we are getting better at detecting and treating cancers, and survival rates are improving.

One of the reasons the government has invested so much in cancer services, particularly services in regional areas, is that the outcomes for those Australians who are diagnosed with cancer and live in rural and regional Australia are still significantly worse than the outcomes for Australians living in one of our capital cities if they are diagnosed with cancer. We were not prepared to let that difference continue. The government has also announced that it is taking very serious action when it comes to trying to reduce the rate of smoking tobacco. Tobacco is a killer product. Unfortunately we still have many Australians who use it, and our increasing the excise is aimed at trying to reduce the numbers of people that will take up smoking to start with. Of course the world-first introduction of plain packaging will help make it less attractive for young Australians into the future.

I am pleased to be able to tell the House that, although the Institute of Health and Welfare report shows the number of Australians who are diagnosed with cancer will increase, the 20 additional regional cancer centres across Australia will have an enormous impact on the treatment of cancer. The projects that we have announced to date represent 14 extra linear accelerators, 22 additional radiation oncology bunkers, over 250 chemotherapy beds or chairs, over 140 patient accommodation places and 10 scanners such as CTs, MRIs and PETs. Communities across Australia have been calling out for these investments, and unfortunately the previous government did not listen to many of those calls. So I was very interested to see in the Townsville Bulletin on 12 June this advertisement from the Liberal Party, with the Leader of the Opposition saying:

We will deliver a PET Scanner immediately.

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