NHS fails to provide support for breast cancer patients

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Breast cancer patients often do not receive the emotional and psychological support they need, according to a study.

During treatment, 40% of more than 800 breast cancer patients said they had too little information on psychological and emotional support available to them.

Furthermore 57% of respondents were concerned with support services once they had left hospital and of these, 55% said that information on psychological or emotional support was lacking.

Samia al Qadi, chief executive of charity Breast Cancer Care, which commissioned the survey, said: 'NICE guidance states that all cancer patients should have access to appropriate psychological support, and we know that Cancer Networks are trying to implement these guidelines.

'Yet as today's research shows, there is little evidence to show that effective psychological support exists.'