Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve diagnosis times for cervical cancer in Ealing Central and Acton constituency.

Improving the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, including cervical cancer, is a priority across England. One of the core ambitions of the NHS Long Term Plan is to diagnose 75% of cancers at stage 1 or 2 by 2028, and to ensure that by 2028, an additional 55,000 people will survive their cancer for five years or more.

A Best Practice Timed Pathway for gynaecological cancers, including cervical, has been produced by NHS England, and will be delivered through Cancer Alliances. The pathway will support the delivery of a diagnosis or ruling out of cancer within 28 days, in line with the recently introduced Faster Diagnosis Standard. This pathway aims to implement rapid patient triage so they can access the right tests, first time, using appropriately staffed one-stop clinics.

This work is supported by the £2.3 billion investment announced at the 2021 Spending Review, that will transform diagnostic services over the next three years including in the Ealing Central and Acton constituency. Most of this investment will help increase the number of Community Diagnostic Centres up to 160 by March 2025, expanding and protecting elective planned diagnostic services.