Written Question

Breast Cancer: Ethnic Groups

Monday 22nd April 2024

Asked by: Dawn Butler (Labour - Brent Central)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to improve breast cancer outcomes amongst Black women.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Reducing inequalities and improving breast cancer outcomes for ethnic minority women, including black women, is a priority for the Government. To support this work, NHS England has commissioned six new cancer clinical audits, which will provide timely evidence for cancer service providers of where patterns of care in England may vary, increase the consistency of access to treatments, and help stimulate improvements in cancer treatments and outcomes for patients, including metastatic breast cancer. The Royal College of Surgeons began work on this audit in October 2022, and the first outcomes are expected in September 2024.

NHS England is also leading a programme of work to tackle healthcare inequalities centred around five clear priorities, which are set out in operational planning guidance for the health system. The Core20PLUS5 approach for adults has been rolled out as an NHS England framework to focus action on reducing inequalities on issues within the National Health Services’ direct influence, which are major contributors to inequalities in life expectancy through major conditions like cancer, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, and others, or Long-Term Plan priorities where stark inequalities are evident, such as maternity or severe mental illness.

The key actions for systems as highlighted in NHS England’s planning guidance for 2024/25 is to continue to deliver against the five strategic priorities for tackling health inequalities. Additionally, by the end of June 2024, NHS England aims to publish joined-up action plans to address health inequalities, and implement the Core20PLUS5 approach.

Improving earlier diagnosis of cancers, including breast cancer, is also a priority for the Government. The NHS has an ambition to diagnose 75% of cancers at stage 1 or 2 by 2028, which will help tens of thousands of people live for longer. Additionally, the new cancer standards developed and supported by cancer doctors and implemented in October 2023, will ensure patients are diagnosed faster, and that treatment starts earlier. In the 2023/24 Operational Planning Guidance, NHS England announced that it is providing over £390 million in cancer service development funding to Cancer Alliances in each of the next two years, to support the delivery of the strategy and the operational priorities for cancer, which includes increasing and prioritising diagnostic and treatment capacity.

Whilst the Major Conditions Strategy does not seek to describe everything that is being done, or could be done, to meet the challenges of individual conditions in silo, it instead focuses on the changes likely to make the most difference across the six groups of major conditions, including cancer.

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Written Question

Cancer and Dementia: Research

Monday 22nd April 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding was provided for (a) dementia and (b) cancer research in the 2022-23 financial year.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Government responsibility for delivering dementia research and dementia research funding is shared between the Department of Health and Social Care, with research delivered by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and the Department for Science Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation.

In 2022/23, we estimate that total Government spend on dementia research was £99.9 million, with £35.1 million of this being via the NIHR. The Department of Health and Social Care spends £1.3 billion per year on health research through the NIHR. NIHR research expenditure for all cancers was £121.8 million in 2022/23, and the NIHR spends more on cancer than any other disease group.

The NIHR funds research in response to proposals received from scientists rather than allocating funding to specific disease areas. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including all cancers and dementia types. It is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.

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Written Question

Bowel Cancer: Screening

Monday 22nd April 2024

Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help improve genomics testing for bowel cancer patients.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

A National Health Service testing programme is helping to diagnose thousands of people with a genetic condition, Lynch Syndrome, that increases the chance of developing certain cancers including bowel cancer. The national programme ensures all people diagnosed with bowel cancer are offered genomic testing, with a diagnosis for Lynch Syndrome not only helping to guide more personalised cancer treatment but enabling their families and relatives to be offered testing too. Relatives who receive a diagnosis of Lynch Syndrome can be referred to genetic services to discuss regular testing options to help catch any cancers as early as possible, as well as to consider preventive options such as taking aspirin or undergoing risk-reducing surgery.

Genomic testing in the NHS in England is provided through the NHS Genomic Medicine Service (GMS) and delivered by a national genomic testing network of seven NHS Genomic Laboratory Hubs (GLHs). The NHS GLHs deliver testing as directed by the National Genomic Test Directory (NGTD) which outlines the full range of genomic testing offered by the NHS in England including tests for 3,200 rare diseases and over 200 cancer clinical indications, including both whole genome sequencing (WGS) and non-WGS testing. The NGTD sets out the eligibility criteria for patients to access testing as well as the genomic targets to be tested and the method that should be used, including testing for bowel cancer patients.

The NHS GMS cancer genomic testing strategy has facilitated a move to a consolidated laboratory network through the seven NHS GLHs delivering more extensive panel testing using cutting edge high throughput Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology. For patients, including those with bowel cancer, this technology enables testing for a larger number of genetic variations to give a more precise diagnosis, identify biomarkers to target treatment and opportunities to access innovative medicines, and can support enrolment into molecularly stratified clinical trials.

Testing is available for all eligible patients across the whole of England. Individuals should discuss with their healthcare professional (for example, their general practitioner or other healthcare professional if they are already being seen in a relevant service) whether genomic testing is appropriate for them. Their healthcare professional will then make a decision whether to refer the individual either directly or via an NHS clinical genomics service or other relevant clinical speciality for genomic testing following clinical review of their and their family’s medical history if known, and the relevant genomic testing eligibility criteria.

The 17 NHS Clinical Genomic Services (NHS CGSs), commissioned by NHS England, deliver a comprehensive clinical genomic and counselling service that directs the diagnosis, risk assessment and lifelong clinical management of patients of all ages and their families who have, or are at risk of having, a rare genetic or genomic condition. As part of the NHS CGS, the patient and their family will access diagnosis, and management relevant to their particular condition, but also receive support and guidance so that they are able to understand their condition, its implications, and their options in relation to reproduction, screening, prevention and clinical management.

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Select Committee

Action on Smoking and Health

PHS0625 - Prevention in health and social care

Written Evidence Apr. 19 2024

Inquiry: Prevention in health and social care
Inquiry Status: Closed
Committee: Health and Social Care Committee (Department: Department of Health and Social Care)

Found: PHS0625 - Prevention in health and social care Action on Smoking and Health Written Evidence

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Non-Departmental Publication (Transparency)
Government Internal Audit Agency

Apr. 18 2024

Source Page: Public Sector Equality Duty report 2022/23
Document: (PDF)

Found: .............................................................................. 16 ‘Working Through Cancer

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