Opposition health spokesman Claudio Grech yesterday called for increased investment in cancer personnel and improved access to medication.

Addressing a news conference after a meeting with the Boffa Hospital management, Mr Grech called for a review of the protocols in place for the assignment of cancer medication, saying this should not be exclusively dependent on a patient’s financial situation.

“Families are often forced to pay thousands of euros every month to finance cancer treatment. It is time for a discussion on how we assign these medications,” he said.

The migration of patients to the new Oncology Centre, he said, would start at the end of the year stretching into next year’s first quarter, nearly a year after it was due. The €60 million hospital was meant to be opened last spring. It is mostly funded by the EU.

Questions sent to the Health Ministry as to when the new centre would be opened were not answered at the time of writing.