The cancer issue that keeps rising post-lockdown

Experts thought the spike in demand for this crucial service would ease when lockdown did. But instead, the numbers are rising.

Calls for help have risen again.

Calls to Victoria’s cancer helpline have increased again, as the organisation warns more people are struggling with the mental and financial toll of the disease.

Almost 3,900 people called Cancer Council Victoria’s free helpline from April to June this year, a jump of 12 per cent compared to the first three months of 2023.

The most common request was for mental or emotional help, representing more than 40 per cent of all calls from patients or their carers, friends and family.

The council’s head of strategy Danielle Spence said they have had to hire more cancer nurses, double their financial counsellors, and start a new legal program to keep up with demand.

She told the Herald Sun demand initially rose during lockdowns but has remained high since.

“I think we’re all surprised that we didn’t sort of see patterns going back to the pre pandemic trends,” she said.

“Here we are post-pandemic still encountering some of the challenges in the health system and that’s what we’re seeing through the calls we’re receiving.

“I think we’ll definitely see the trend continue.”

She said while an increased awareness of virtual healthcare and their 13 11 20 service could explain some of the demand, it was not the only cause.

“So many people are being challenged not just by cancer, but by all the other pressures of life,” she said.

“I think it’s a reflection on the difficult times that people are encountering (mentally).

“A number of calls … (are) around the financial impact of cancer.

“We know how hard it is to pay your bills, to pay your mortgage, to pay those increasing electricity bills when you can’t work, or you find for the first time you might have to access welfare.”

But Ms Spence said it wasn’t just call volume that was rising, with the severity of cases also increasing.

“People are coming with much more complex problems and they’re not just needing one referral to a support service,” she said.

“They’re often needing multiple referrals.

“We continue to need donor and government investment to ensure that we can deliver the services that people need.”

13 11 20 cancer nurse Clem Byard agreed with Ms Spence and said there was “still a high level of distress” in the cancer community.

“That hasn’t really come back to baseline for us,” she said.

“We’re really busy. We’re getting more calls. We’re getting longer calls.

“We’re getting lots of calls that are quite distressed.”