By Anna Zuurmond
CANCER deaths are rising sharply across Andalucia, new figures have revealed, as scientists attribute the surge to a ‘failing’ health system.
Between 2019 and 2024, Andalucia recorded 4,651 more deaths from malignant tumours than the national average in Spain, according to the Gaceta Sanitaria.
The same period saw 1,480 additional deaths from colon cancer and 562 more from breast cancer.
While cancer deaths in the region were already above average during the previous five-year period, the trend worsened considerably between 2019 and 2024, prompting the study’s authors to warn of ‘deficiencies’ and ‘deterioration’ in oncology care across the region.
In a letter introducing the new statistics, the three scientists said: “Are we facing a temporary, isolated error, or widespread and progressive deficiencies in cancer care related to a deterioration of the Andalucian Health Service?”
The Andalucian government, led by right-wing Partido Popular (PP) under Juanma Moreno, said the rise was not due to mismanagement of health services, but instead to factors such as smoking habits and historical health inequalities in the region.
But according to figures from Spain’s Ministry of Health, Andalucia has some of the longest waiting lists in the country, and ranks second-to-last among autonomous communities in terms of the quality of its health services.
In 2025, Andalusia received the worst national ranking from its own citizens for their experience of the healthcare system, according to a Ministry of Health study.
This year’s report on cancer deaths was commissioned in 2025 after a breast screening scandal shook the region, triggering a regional health and political crisis that still resonates today.
Around 2,000 women were affected by failures to communicate the results of their mammograms, which led to the resignation of health minister Rocio Hernandez in October.
Over the past 20 years, mortality rates from breast cancer have fallen across Spain, but in Andalucia the decline has been more limited.
Andalucia also has one of the highest incidences of breast cancer in Spain; five of the ten provinces with the highest rates are in Andalucia.
Similarly, for colon cancer, there was a downward trend for both men and women between 2012 and 2020 across Spain – but rates remained higher in Andalucia.
The study said there was a link between higher mortality rates and the privatisation rate of health services, which has almost doubled in Andalucia between 2014 and 2025 – although it remains below levels seen in regions such as Madrid, the Balearic Islands, and Catalunya.
It is not yet clear whether this increase in mortality can be directly linked to privatisation, but the study has called for an audit of the Andalucian government’s cancer policies, including epidemiological surveillance and primary and secondary prevention in comprehensive cancer care.
With elections fast approaching on 17 May, healthcare is expected to be a key issue for voters.
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‘Rescuing the health system’ and slowing the pace of privatisation has been a central focus of Maria Jesus Montero’s campaign for the left-wing PSOE.
Another key issue has been the loss of health professionals, who leave after training to work elsewhere in Spain or abroad.
This outflow has left Andalucia with fewer healthcare professionals per resident than the national average, with critics pointing to poor working conditions in Andalucian hospitals.
The regional government and the Andalucian Society of Medical Oncology (SAOM) have been approached for comment.
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As usual, no consideration for any other “new” factor that emerged in 2021. Predicted that cancer rates would soar but now ignored! Sigh!!
Having been treated in Malaga for colo-rectal cancer over the last 2 years, I would say the care has been excellent.