WIREDGOV

Sarah Woolnough, Chief Executive of The King’s Fund, responded to the publication of the National Cancer Plan

‘This is a plan which has been a long time in the making with over 11,000 responses to the call for evidence, many from patients and carers who are directly affected by the current state of cancer care. It is welcome to see the result of this engagement being an ambitious, long-term plan with a clear set of priorities for the health and care system to work towards. At the heart of this is a bold ambition to double down on diagnosing cancers early and ensure the variation in access to the best treatment is tackled. 

‘It attempts to bring to life the commitments made in the 10 Year Health Plan, shifting from analogue to digital with focus on the NHS app, moving care out of hospital into the community with a commitment to more home based chemotherapy, and tackling inequalities in access to the latest innovations. There are several other commitments which will be welcomed by cancer patients, their carers and those living after cancer. It includes a focus on improving quality of life and several measures to improve the outlook for those at risk of or have been diagnosed with rare cancers. 

‘Ministers will need to be careful that they don’t put the cart before the horse and ensure that they get the basics delivered swiftly too. Many hospitals still cannot share imaging or pathology results in a timely way due to old technology holding them back. Addressing this needs to receive as much focus as rolling out major new AI projects. 

‘As is becoming a theme for this government’s health policy, it doesn’t appear to be as ambitious about preventing people from becoming sick in the first place. The government should see the generational smoking ban as a first step in the ‘prevention revolution’ but instead it risks turning into an end point. With four in 10 cancers being preventable, we were hoping the plan would be an opportunity to go further to tackle obesity, alcohol and physical inactivity. 

‘There are questions to be raised about how feasible the plan’s stated aim of hitting the cancer treatment standards, that have been regularly missed in recent years, is. Aside from additional funding for a faster rollout of lung cancer screening, the government will have to deliver within the existing Spending Review settlement, and hope the economic outlook improves to secure future investment in the outer years of the plan. 

‘The system as it stands will not meet the cancer treatment standards by 2029 unless there is a big step change. To that end there remain questions about whether the levers are in place to make this possible and how the system can also meet the new commitments announced in the plan. The government will need to show it has the answers if it is to achieve its aim of transforming cancer treatment, boosting survival rates and improving quality of life.’ 

Notes to editors

The King’s Fund projections of the improvement needed in cancer services for government to meet targets by March 2029. Link here - Source: NHS England