John Baron MP leads debate on new cancer strategy

MP says earlier diagnosis crucial to improving survival rates

Yesterday in the House of Commons, John Baron MP led and opened a debate on the new cancer strategy, drawn up by the Independent Cancer Taskforce, itself established by NHS England. The debate was secured via the Back Bench Business Committee by the Chairs of the cancer-specific All-Party Parliamentary Groups, and enabled MPs to raise a wide range of cancer-related issues.

During the debate, John said,

“The magnitude of the challenges before us are clear to see – there are currently 2.5m people living with cancer in the UK, and by the end of next year there is expected to be 1,000 people diagnosed with cancer every day.”
“The All-Part Parliamentary Group on Cancer (APPGC) strongly welcomes the recommendations in the cancer strategy. However, we also believe we need to continue to ensure that we use data on one-year cancer survival rates to drive improvement in earlier diagnosis – having previously worked with the Government and NHS England to get these one-year figures into the DNA of the NHS”.

Afterwards, John said,

“This was an excellent debate, and I would like to thank the other All-Party Group Chairs for joining me in securing it, as well as to all those who made a contribution. I would especially like to thank the Minister, Ben Gummer MP, for stepping into the breach even though cancer is not within his brief.”

“MPs raised many important points during the debate. For me, one of the most important issues is that the NHS, especially at a local level, retains its focus on the importance of earlier diagnosis. This is crucial if we are to improve cancer survival, as late diagnosis makes for poor survival.”