Saturday’s Press discloses the tragic result of the pandemic lockdowns (Hundreds of cancer cases diagnosed late, The Press, January 29).

We were told over and over not to contact our GP unless it was absolutely necessary - and there was little chance of actually making contact if you tried. GPs often seemed to be protected by receptionists, making judgements on whether or not anybody could speak to their GP.

Now we are told that ‘46 per cent of the 240 lung cancers detected in 2019 were at stage 4 when found, as were 35 per cent of pancreatic cancers’. I appreciate we will never know how many of these cases would have been diagnosed earlier if those with cancer had managed to see their GP earlier.

One cannot but wonder how many other life-threatening conditions remained undiscovered, because of people’s reluctance to contact their GP, or indeed being told their symptoms were not life threatening as they only had a telephone conversation rather than a face-to-face examination.

Perhaps there is data to show how many telephone conversations resulted in people being offered face-to-face consultations with their GP and on to a hospital appointment.

From personal experience I don’t know where we would have been without the community nurses, who often seemed the only ones still carrying out home visits and caring for their patients.

Jim Welsman, Stamford Bridge, York

 

National Insurance rise won’t all go to NHS

The government has now confirmed that the rise in National Insurance contributions will go ahead in April to raise £12 billion for the NHS.

There is no such thing as the ‘National Insurance Fund’. This was abolished by Gordon Brown in the 1990s. All NI contributions now go into the general taxation pot. A raised rate of NI is therefore simply an increase in the basic rate of tax and the chances of this entire £12 billion all going to the NHS each and every year is nil.

Compare this to the cost of HS2 (£80 billion and rising) all to build a pointless train line from London to Birmingham which nobody wants.

If this government really cared about anybody other than their rich friends, they would abolish HS2, give the money to the NHS and scrap the NI rise.

Tony Taylor, Grassholme, Woodthorpe, York