National Cancer Standards for Children published

1 Apr 2011 01:55 PM

The Standards provide a foundation for NHS Wales to plan and deliver effective high quality services for children with cancer from birth up to and including the age of 15.
 
The Standards identify which healthcare professionals should be involved in treatment and care at different time points, and the types of hospital or cancer centre that are best suited to provide that healthcare reflecting the requirements of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) service guidance.

Mrs Hart said:

“Cancer, particularly amongst children, is an emotive disease. These new standards will support clinicians in caring for children suffering from cancer.

“Through prevention, speedy diagnosis and treatment, we will reduce the devastating impact that cancer can have on individuals and families and friends. More people are now surviving cancer and surviving for longer than ever before but we must build on this achievement. These standards will help to do that.”

The announcement of these standards builds upon the series of existing National Cancer Standards that have been previously published. The Standards for Children with Cancer are expected to be fully implemented by March 2013. It is expected that local Health Boards will plan and implement them through their joint work on the Welsh Health Specialist Services Committee.
 
Current cancer services for children will already be compliant with a number of these standards, but Local Health Boards will now be expected to implement the national standards in all their services across Wales to ensure they all reach the required standard of care.