Macmillan Cancer Support has called for the NHS to shift towards proper aftercare in the light of figures which show the number of people being diagnosed with cancer in the UK every year has risen to 330,0001.
Mike Hobday, Director of Policy and Research at Macmillan Cancer Support, said: "We know that there are currently more than two million people living with or beyond cancer in the UK and that this will grow to four million by 2030."
He added that the cost of treating inpatients with breast and prostate cancer in England alone is predicted to surge by a fifth in a decade, hitting at least £790million a year by 20203.
Hobday concluded: "We are concerned that the NHS will simply not be able to cope with this surge in demand for its services.
"There needs to be a fundamental shift towards proper after-care, with more care delivered in the community and better engagement with cancer patients in their own health so that no one is left to face cancer alone.'"
