Subscribe
OPML- Patients will receive faster diagnosis, quicker treatment, and the support to live well with cancer under the government’s landmark new National Cancer Plan.
- 75% of patients diagnosed from 2035 will be cancer-free or living well after five years, following a record investment in the NHS.
- NHS to meet all cancer waiting time standards by 2029, with hundreds of thousands more patients being treated within 62 days.
Stephen Morgan MP has said Portsmouth patients will receive faster diagnosis, quicker treatment, and the support to live well with cancer under the government’s landmark National Cancer Plan.
For the first time, the NHS will commit to ensuring three in four people diagnosed with cancer from 2035 onwards are cancer-free or living well after five years.
This represents the fastest rate of improvement in cancer outcomes this century and will translate to 320,000 more lives saved over the lifetime of the plan.
The NHS has not met its central cancer performance target – that 85% of patients start treatment within 62 days of referral – since 2014. Survival rates are below Romania and Poland for some cancer types.
Under this plan, welcomed by the city MP, that will change – by March 2029, the NHS will meet all three cancer waiting time standards, meaning hundreds of thousands more patients will receive timely treatment. This demonstrates the real change being delivered by the government’s record investment as we rebuild the NHS.
60% of patients currently survive for 5 years or more and around 2.4m people are currently living after a cancer diagnosis.
Portsmouth South MP Stephen Morgan said:
“I am proud to be part of a government committed to delivering faster diagnosis, quicker treatment and thorough support for those living with cancer.
“The NHS’s commitment to ensuring three in four cancer patients are cancer-free or living well after five years from 2035 onwards is a big step forward in ensuring better outcomes for patients in Portsmouth and across the UK.”
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said:
“As a cancer survivor who owes my life to the NHS, I owe it to future patients to make sure they receive the same outstanding care I did.
“Thanks to the revolution in medical science and technology, we have the opportunity to transform the life chances of cancer patients. Our cancer plan will invest in and modernise the NHS, so that opportunity can be seized and our ambitions realised.
“This plan will slash waits, invest in cutting-edge technology, and give every patient the best possible chance of beating cancer.”
Gemma Peters, Chief Executive at Macmillan Cancer Support, said:
“It’s encouraging to see such bold survival ambitions in the National Cancer Plan for England. This comes at a time when people living with cancer tell us all too often that their care hasn’t been good enough, from long waits for tests and treatment to being left without the support they need once treatment ends.
“This Plan has the potential to transform care for people living with cancer, ensuring people not only live longer but live better with their diagnosis. We look forward to working with the government to make this vision a reality: adding life to years, as well as years to life.”
While more people survive cancer than ever before, progress has slowed over the last decade, and England remains behind other comparable countries including Australia and Denmark. For some cancers, such as brain cancer, survival rates in England trail behind countries like Croatia and Romania.
The cancer plan comes as the government continues to make strides on cancer waiting lists, diagnosing or ruling out cancer on time for 213,000 extra cases since July last year.
One hundred and seventy community diagnostic centres are now open – with over 100 of them available at evenings and weekends – bringing checks, scans and tests closer to where people live and at times that work around them.
The government is also taking tough action on the causes on cancer: introducing a generational ban on smoking and a ban on junk food ads before 9pm.
