Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the national cancer strategy will include commitments to improve outcomes for (a) acute myeloid leukaemia and (b) other rare and less common cancers.

The National Cancer Plan will seek to improve the experience and outcomes for people with rarer and less common cancers, including acute myeloid leukaemia. The plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes, as well as speeding up diagnosis and treatment, ensuring patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately bringing this country’s cancer survival rates back up to the standards of the best in the world.

The plan will foster opportunities for UK researchers to collaborate on international cancer research, which is particularly important for areas where affected populations are small, such as with rare cancers. The plan will also consider the ways that we can accelerate the uptake of innovative, life-saving treatments so all NHS patients can benefit. We will work closely with partners including the National Institute for Health and Care Research on this.