It is important that every
effort is made to continue raising awareness of breast cancer, and tackle this
disease, which has taken so many lives over the years.
In 2015, Public Health
England launched Be Clear on Cancer, a national scheme which, I am pleased to
say, has significantly improved awareness of breast cancer in women over 70,
who account for roughly 1 in 3 cases of breast cancer. Breast cancer survival
rates have improved remarkably over the last 40 years, and this is testament to
the efforts made to raise awareness of, and boost funding into tackling this
disease.
I know that ministers are
making great efforts to improve cancer services, and ensure that the NHS
provides some of the world's best cancer care. The NHS has launched the
National Cancer Programme which is committed to offering uniquely tailored
cancer treatment to all patients with breast cancer by 2020. It is working
closely with Health Education England and Macmillan Cancer Support to
understand the best ways developing and implementing cancer services by the
same date.
You may be interested to
know that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is
updating its guidelines on the diagnosis and management of breast cancer. These
guidelines will cover the use of adjuvant bisphosphonates and other cancer
drugs, and will be published in July 2018.
I believe these
developments will significantly improve patient experience and quality of care.
The NHS is implementing the independent Cancer Taskforce's recommendation that
all breast cancer patients shall receive access to a Clinical Nurse Specialist,
or other key workers. This will enable greater detection of any recurrence or
secondary breast cancer, and enable a quick and effective return to care.
This is part of the NHS's
ambitious wider strategy to improve cancer outcomes, and save 30,000 lives per
year by 2020.
