Earlier cancer diagnosis and NHS finances
3 min read
Conservative MP John Baron writes for PoliticsHome ahead of his debate on earlier cancer diagnosis and NHS finances
In recent years the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cancer (APPGC), together with many in the ‘cancer community’, has campaigned to improve the NHS’ performance when it comes to earlier diagnosis. The logic is simple: late diagnosis makes for poor cancer survival rates, as late-stage cancers are invariably more difficult to treat. Catching cancers in their early stages gives the best chance of successful treatment. Bowel cancer patients, for example, have a 95% chance of surviving at least five years from diagnosis if their disease is caught at stage I.
This issue is particularly relevant to our constituents because, as the APPGC’s 2009 inquiry showed, although the NHS is as good as any other health service (if not better) at treating cancer once diagnosed, it fares poorly at detecting it in the first place. This is one of the main reasons why our survival rates lag well behind comparable international averages. In Sweden, around 82% of patients survive at least one year from their initial cancer diagnosis, whereas only around 70% achieve the same in England.
In December 2014, the APPGC was very pleased when the Chief Executive of NHS England announced at our annual ‘Britain Against Cancer’ conference that Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) were to be held accountable for their individual one-year cancer survival rates. This was something the APPGC had been campaigning for, in order to ensure that pressure was brought to bear on CCGs to improve their cancer performance. I am pleased that the latest ‘OFSTED’-style ratings have maintained this focus on survival rates, and the fact that these ratings found 8 in 10 CCGs must improve shows the scale of the challenge and the extent to which we need to raise our game.
The debate this morning also aims to highlight another large benefit of earlier diagnosis, which are significantly reduced treatment costs. Late diagnosis (measured as diagnosis at stages III or IV) is a major driver of NHS cancer costs – late-stage colon, rectal, lung and ovarian cancers cost the NHS nearly two and a half times the amount spent on cancers detected at stages I and II. These treatments also tend to be more aggressive, causing additional stress for patients and their families.
A recent study by Incisive Health suggests that the NHS could save around £210 million each year by diagnosing earlier, benefitting some 52,000 patients. Quite apart from the gains in human terms, these are significant savings at a time when everyone acknowledges the NHS budget is under severe strain, and would free up funds which could be better spent on the next generation of drugs and other innovative treatments.
Yet it seems the NHS is slow to recognise these opportunities, and I therefore hope the Minister will respond positively this morning to my calls for the Government and NHS England to look at this matter more closely. We at the APPGC will certainly keep on the case.
John Baron is Conservative MP for Basildon and Billericay, and has been Chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cancer since 2009
Blood cancer charity Bloodwise responded to John Baron's article saying "rather than additional investment we need further thought and NHS working closer together with cancer charities and patient organisations on how to increase awareness of cancers with non-specific symptoms, such as blood cancers." Read the full response here.
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