Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with relevant stakeholders on the (a) roll out of Al pathologist technology by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board to test men for prostate cancer and (b) potential merits of that testing technology for health outcomes.

The Department has not had specific discussions with stakeholders.

The new Artificial Intelligence (AI) Galen technology was developed by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board to diagnose prostate cancer. The Galen application increases accuracy and speed of sample testing in suspected cancer cases and provides clinicians with a definitive diagnosis. It also reduces the need for duplicating biopsies and provides earlier diagnosis in positive cases, which improves patient health outcomes.

Imperial College Healthcare, University College London, University Hospital of Coventry and Warwickshire, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and University Hospitals Southampton will be trialling the Galen technology with the potential for adoption more widely across the health system. The trial is funded as part of the £140 million AI in Health and Care Award Programme run by the NHS AI Lab and the Accelerated Access Collaborative.