Brain Tumour Charity Joins Govt’s 10yr Cancer Plan

Apr 20, 2022

The Brain Tumour Charity has joined more than 50 other organisations and signed up to the government’s ten-year cancer plan, which aims at improving care for cancer patients in the UK.

As well as providing evidence to help develop the goals for better cancer care, the Brain Tumour Charity has put its name down on a consensus statement published by One Cancer Voice.

This laid out ten tests the new plan must adhere to for it to be successful in providing better care, support and treatment of cancer patients.

The statement from One Cancer Voice read: “Drawing on our collective experiences from supporting people living with cancer, research, data and insight, we have developed this consensus statement, setting out what actions Government and the NHS need to take to ensure people diagnosed with cancer in England get the very best care and treatment.”

It stated that “people living with cancer must be at the heart of cancer care and support”.

One Cancer Voice wanted to remind the government how important a successful outcome of the ten-year plan is, saying: “[It] must be ambitious in scope to recover from the pandemic and to close the gap between England and the best performing countries in the world.”

According to figures from Cancer Research UK, 858 people are diagnosed with cancer every single day. Despite ongoing research, the number of people who die from cancer every year has increased by eight per cent since 2001.

The ten tests the government’s plan needs to fulfil include having a clear political leadership and being fully funded till the end; England being ‘smoke free’ by 2030; greater awareness of the risk factors and symptoms of cancer to reduce emergency presentation to below five per cent; and early diagnosis rising to 78 per cent of cases.

One Cancer Voice also wants the plan to ensure cancer waiting time targets are met throughout the UK and everyone has access to the treatment they need at the right time; cancer patients have a personalised care plan for their wider wellbeing needs by 2032; patients have access to specialist workforce and equipment they need; giving health service staff more time to dedicate to training and enabling everyone to join clinical trials; and data collection, analysis and publishing is done quickly.

The group of charities also wants the number of cancer cases that could have been prevented if it was not for social inequalities to have decreased within the next decade.

Secretary of state for health and social care Sajid Javid also issued a Call for Evidence earlier this year to encourage groups and people to answer questions on different categories such as treatment, care, support, aftercare, research, data, prevention and faster diagnosis.

In addition to signing up to One Cancer Voice’s consensus statement, the Brain Tumour Charity submitted responses to the Call for Evidence. It specifically highlighted the challenges those with brain tumours have to contend with.

Over 5,300 people die from a brain tumour every year, and reduce the life expectancy by 27 years, which is more than any other cancer.

Shockingly, they are the biggest cause of cancer death in people under the age of 40, including children, and just 12 per cent of adults survive more than five years after being given a diagnosis.

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