The Rudd Government will invest $4.8 million to provide equipment for a comprehensive cancer centre at Port Macquarie Hospital, as part of the North Coast Cancer Institute Regional Cancer Service.
With some cancers, patients from rural areas are up to three times more likely to die within five years of diagnosis than their counterparts in urban areas. The $4.8 million investment in Port Macquarie will work towards improving the services and care for the more than 32,000 NSW residents diagnosed with cancer each year.
The investment will fund the purchase of a new linear accelerator which can provide treatment for an estimated extra 414 radiotherapy patients per year.
It is part of an allocation of $17.1 million to the North Coast Cancer Institute Regional Cancer Service, which will bring new equipment and facilities to the service's Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour and Lismore campuses.
This includes a second linear accelerator and a Positron Emissions Tomography/Computed Tomography (PET/CT) scanner at Lismore, and a new Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine at Coffs Harbour.
An amount of $2.6 million will also be invested in a 20-unit cancer patient and carer accommodation facility, "Our House", to be built adjacent to the new cancer care centre at the Lismore Base Hospital.
The increase in cancer service infrastructure and capacity in this region has the potential to improve access to essential cancer services for those in highest need, including high retiree populations and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, who currently travel to Brisbane or Sydney for treatment.
The additional infrastructure will also underpin planning for future expansion of radiotherapy services in this region.
This initiative builds on the Rudd Government's investment at the Port Macquarie Hospital of almost $218,000 to reduce the elective surgery waiting list.
While Australia has better overall cancer survival rates than comparable countries, there is still unacceptable variation for some people, depending on the type of cancer, a person's socioeconomic status or where they live.
The integrated North Coast Cancer Institute forms part of the Rudd Government's $560 million commitment to establish regional cancer centres so that Australians can get cancer care closer to home and their community.
Since coming into office, the Government has committed over $2.3 billion in cancer infrastructure, medicines, screening and research.
Today's announcement also shows the benefit of the Federal Government stepping up to the plate and providing funding for health services across Australia.
Under the National Health and Hospitals Network, the Rudd Government would provide 60 per cent of the funding for capital upgrades for public hospitals.
The Rudd Government's plan will see health services funded nationally and run locally through local hospital networks to deliver better outcomes for local communities.