Childhood Cancer Outcomes

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Tuesday 26th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

First, let me thank the hon. Member for Gosport (Dame Caroline Dinenage) for setting the scene so very well, and all right hon. and hon. Members who have made fantastic contributions here today. I share her concerns, as we all do. I am the father of three strapping boys and I have five grandchildren, and our worst fear is that something like this may come along. As politicians in this House, we have a duty to put in place a system that can ensure a quick diagnosis; the availability of testing; the availability of treatment and staff; and the best possible set-up to aid the child in their fight against cancer. I commend all the charities in this area, particularly CLIC Sargent, which does tremendous work in my constituency. I am ever minded of the survey carried out by the all-party group on children, teenagers, and young adults with cancer. It surveyed young people, parents and healthcare professionals, with 56% suggesting that better training for GPs on cancer in children and young people would make the biggest single improvement. I would like to hear the Minister’s thoughts on that. Research has also referred to clinical depression and anxiety among young people, with those with multiple GP consultations before diagnosis becoming clinically anxious. Again, I would like to hear the Minister’s thoughts on that and how we can deal with it more quickly. Having functioning GP services as the first line of defence in health is essential for outcomes in childhood cancer.

I agree with the Teenage Cancer Trust’s recommendation that the 10-year cancer plan should also commit to achieving access rates to clinical trials of 50% by 2025, as has been highlighted by others. The plan should look further than 2025—it should also look towards 2032. Again, I would like to hear the Minister’s thoughts on how we can achieve that. Clinical trials can significantly improve cancer outcomes for teenagers and young adults, but young people with cancer are currently not getting an equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from them. A recent trial for patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia showed that young people’s survival rates improved by 18% through involvement in this clinical trial. Given that success in clinical trials, perhaps we should give more opportunity to young people to participate in them. Trial availability is the major determinant of participation. If there are no trials available or existing for young cancer patients, there is no possibility of inclusion. Where trials do exist, there are often barriers to accessing them, such as arbitrary age eligibility criteria. What can be done to ensure that those who can and wish to be part of those trials can be part of them? There is also no data publicly available to show progress towards the commitment of the 50% by 2025, and again I look to the Minister for help on that.

The issue is clear: we need more support and more access to clinical trials if we are to win this battle against childhood cancer. There is no more worthy battle that we must fight and must win, and we look forward very much to the Minister’s response.