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the use of these drugs is "slow and low." Research shows that France had for five years, the highest survival rate for all cancers in Europe, with 71% women and 53% of men. The second place is Spain with 64% and 50% respectively, and in last place, the United Kingdom, where they managed to survive 53% of women and 43% of men. "Progress in medical treatments has meant that more than half of patients who are diagnosed with cancer can now be" cured "or they may die from other causes," says one of the authors, Dr. Nils Wilking. Where you live determines the quality of treatment. "However, he added, these benefits only become real when the drugs reach the patients." "And our study shows that in many countries the new treatments do not come fast enough for the sick and this is having an adverse impact on patient survival." According to the authors, the place where the patient lives determines whether or not he will receive the best treatment available. Scientists believe that to some extent this is determined by economic factors, but much of the differences between countries remain unexplained. The results were measured by the proportion of patients who were given the drug and the speed with which the drugs were released after they were produced. The greatest differences were found in medicines for bowel cancer and lung cancer. In the U.S., access to Avastin for bowel cancer, was 10 times higher than the European average, the study said. For lung cancer, access to Erlotinib was 10 times higher than the European average in the U.S., and three times higher in Germany. Action In Latin America, however, no studies analyzing the survival rates of patients with cancer. In Latin America still needs to be done on prevention, because we invest heavily in helping the sick, and yet we spend almost nothing on prevention Dr. Eduardo Laura As told BBC Science Dr. Eduardo Laura, representative of Central and South America International Association of Cancer Registries, "these studies imply a history of cancer registries have enough time that does not exist in the region." "But as for how to manage the disease in Latin America," says the expert, there is still much to be done on prevention. " The region has huge disparities in health between countries, with Brazil and Argentina at one end, and poorer countries like Bolivia, Paraguay and Honduras in the other. But in general, says Dr. Laura, "we invest heavily in helping the sick, for example, resources spent on chemotherapy in Argentina." "And yet we spend almost nothing on prevention," said the specialist. According to the authors of the study "We hope this report will inspire policy makers and governments to take action to address inequities." "Because access to new cancer drugs should not depend on the country where the patient resides." The cancer research continues to progress every day and is expected in the coming years are introduced many new drugs and therapies. However, the scientists said, "The countries urgently need to address the way they distribute these new therapies in health systems and how to pay for them."