Cambridge cancer charity says quicker diagnoses will save 20,000 people by 2024
The charity says there has been “fantastic progress over the last 50 years"
A report by Cancer Research UK, based in Cambridge, is calling for more government action to speed up diagnoses and get patients treated quickly.
By 2040, Cancer Research thinks there will be 500,000 people diagnosed with cancer each year, that will include 49,000 people in the East of England, which is why they’ve published their ‘longer, better lives’ manifesto.
Matt Sample, Policy Manager at Cancer Research UK explains that if the government adopts the 5 missions of their manifesto, “cancer mortality rates will fall by 15% by 2024 meaning 1800 fewer people will die each year in the East of England”.
The charity says there has been “fantastic progress over the last 50 years - we’ve seen survival double” but currently “we are at risk of that progress being stolen”.
Matt explains it’s “vital to speed up progress on early diagnosis”, to ensure this progress isn’t “stolen”.
“One of the most important things is to implement targeted lung cancer screening”.
Lung cancer has one of the worst outcomes due to late detection. Cancer Research is calling on the government to speed up the implement of this screening.
The NHS has started rolling out targeted lung screening but they are lacking staff and key equipment which can help speed up diagnoses.
Matt explained more needs to be done in the East of England and Cambridgeshire.
A new Cancer Research Hospital has been built in Cambridge - which they say will play a crucial role in changing the story of cancer.
But Matt says there needs to be “more investments and workforce so we can staff these fantastic new hospitals”.