Cancer Outcomes in the UK

Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe Excerpts

Tuesday 21st April 2026 Grand Committee

[Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Patel, for securing the debate and pay tribute to his indefatigable commitment to improving health outcomes and championing research and to his powerful and moving speech. I am pleased to have the opportunity to contribute to the debate. I know that I will not be the only speaker whose family has been touched by cancer. Seeing much-loved family members or friends suffer is the reason we can all agree that patients deserve timely diagnosis and the best possible treatment. In the past, I have spoken about pancreatic cancer and brain cancer from my own family perspective. I will focus my remarks on these and other cancers, including cancers of the liver, lungs, oesophagus and stomach, which are grouped, rather grimly, as the least-survivable cancers.

I warmly welcome the recently published national cancer plan, which has brought these rarer cancers into focus. For the first time, we have a national plan that makes specific commitments to less common cancers and I commend the Government for that. The plan aims to have three out of four people diagnosed with cancer survive five or more years by 2035, as the noble Lord, Lord Patel, pointed out. It recognises that progress for people affected by less survivable cancers is key to this aim. As the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce notes,

“these cancers account for a disproportionate number of cancer deaths and require focused action if overall survival targets are to be met”.

Earlier detection and faster diagnosis for all forms of cancer are critical to improving people’s access to treatment and, ultimately, their chance of survival, but progress on the rarer cancers still lags behind progress on others. Survival rates for these cancers have remained largely static over the last 25 years, partly because their often vague and non-specific symptoms can make early diagnosis very difficult. Just 28% of less survivable cancers are diagnosed at stages 1 or 2, compared to 54% of all cancers. A large proportion of people with less survivable cancers are diagnosed in A&E, so the national cancer plan’s strong focus on early diagnosis is welcome.

It is an excellent and ambitious plan informed by cancer professionals, patients and their families but, as ever, it will take funding to secure real improvement and change. Like others, I am aware that this plan is launched at a time when there seem to be substantial economic growth problems and demand on public spending is being stretched in all directions. We need to be realistic about what can be done here and now. Our efforts must be focused on what will have the greatest impact. I was therefore very pleased to read last week that we are making progress in our efforts to cut set-up times for clinical trials. Approval processes in the UK have been slow and bureaucratic, so faster access to new treatments and medicines can be only a good thing. Will the Minister say more about how we can now encourage people to access clinical trials and tackle historically low patient recruitment?

We need to prioritise research, particularly into the less survivable cancers. We know that rare cancers account for some 47% of UK cancer diagnoses and some 55% of cancer deaths, yet they receive a fraction of research funding and clinical trial work. The Rare Cancers Act, passed last month, is a huge step towards addressing this imbalance, and I pay tribute to Scott Arthur MP, who saw it through its passage in the House of Commons, and my noble friend Lady Elliott of Whitburn Bay, who steered it through its final stages in this House. It will drive research innovation to improve treatments and survival for rare cancers, including brain tumours and pancreatic cancer. Can the Minister give us any encouragement on moves to appoint a national clinical lead for rare cancers, as called for in the Act and in the National Cancer Plan for England? I am very conscious of the substantial funds made available only eight years ago, following the death of our noble friend Lady Jowell. A very small proportion of that money has yet been spent, and that was eight years ago.

In finishing, I want to highlight some encouraging developments in diagnosing a cancer that currently has a UK survival rate of just over 8% and that has affected my family particularly. Innovative diagnostic tests and emerging AI technologies have real potential to help GPs triage patients with vague symptoms. For example, the VAPOR breath test for pancreatic cancer being developed at Imperial College and part funded by Pancreatic Cancer UK can detect volatile organic compounds released from tumours at an early stage. Results are showing that this quick test, which involves breathing into a bag at the GP’s surgery, can pinpoint whether a person is likely to have pancreatic cancer, with the results available to GPs in three days. This would put an end to the patient going backwards and forwards to the GP many times with non-specific symptoms and allow for earlier treatment. The test is now undergoing national clinical trials, and it could be in GP surgeries within the next five years. I end by saying: we live in hope.

Safe Housing and Hospital Discharge

Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe Excerpts

Wednesday 19th March 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

As the noble Baroness will be aware, this Government want to see provision and decision-making directed by local leaders. She and the House will be aware of the financial situation which we have inherited. I reiterate what I said about the £9 billion committed to the better care fund, which includes £5.6 billion to integrated care boards and around £3.3 billion to local authorities.

[Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe (Lab)]

My Lords, 73% of delayed discharges from mental health hospitals are due to a lack of appropriate supported housing step-down services. With bed occupancy rates of 94%, the increasing pressure is driving up the inappropriate use of out-of-area placements. What plans do the Government have to ensure that there is enough supported housing to meet the demand for step-down services?

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

My noble friend made particular reference to mental health care. She will be aware of the discussions that took place at Second Reading and in Committee on the Mental Health Bill. I am sure we can all agree that an out-of-area placement is not ideal, although there are some circumstances in which it has to be the case. In the progress of that Bill, we will be attending to the point that she makes. I agree with her that the delays attributed to housing are significantly higher, at 17% for patients who are discharged from mental health settings. This remains a challenge that we are focused on.

Mental Health Treatment: Waiting Times

Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe Excerpts

Monday 3rd February 2025 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to reduce the waiting time for access to mental health treatment.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Baroness Merron) (Lab)]

My Lords, I am pleased to be answering this Question during Children’s Mental Health Week. To ensure that high-quality support can be accessed in a timely manner, among other actions we are committed to recruiting 8,500 more mental health workers to cut waiting times, introducing access to specialist mental health professionals in every school and rolling out young futures hubs in every community.

[Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for that helpful reply. There has been a 33% rise in mental health referrals since 2019 and it is particularly severe for children and young people, with an increase from 12% to 20% for those experiencing mental health conditions. This has not been matched by an increase in investment in services or additional staff to enable early intervention and speedy help. Many children have been forced to wait till their conditions escalate, putting a lot more pressure and exceptional demand on school counsellors and on community care. Can the Minister say exactly what the Government are doing to address these pressures, particularly on young people? How will she ensure that funding at local level will focus on their needs?

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

I agree with my noble friend’s assessment of the impact of what is a totally unacceptable situation, particularly for children and young people. On the point about ensuring delivery locally, I refer your Lordships’ House to the NHS planning guidance, published last week, which not only confirms our commitment to the mental health investment standard but sets out an objective to increase the numbers of children and young people under 25 accessing services in the forthcoming year compared to 2019.