National Cancer Plan

Will Forster Excerpts

Thursday 5th February 2026 Commons Chamber

[Ashley Dalton]

Yes, I do agree. This plan is about ensuring that wraparound care is there from the very beginning, and I would be more than delighted, if my diary allows, to visit the service that my hon. Friend mentions.

[Mr Will Forster (Woking) (LD)]

Yesterday, for World Cancer Day, I hosted here in Parliament Walk the Walk, a national charity that I am proud is based in my Woking constituency. It has raised over £146 million to fight cancer and to help people live healthy lives. I am sorry that the Secretary of State is no longer in his place, but will the Minister ask him to choose his favourite bra and join me on a Walk the Walk—with he in his favourite bra and me in mine—so that we can raise awareness for “mannogram” testing? Will she also ensure that mammogram testing is extended to the under-40s and the over-70s?

[Ashley Dalton]

Ministers quite like making promises from the Dispatch Box on behalf of our Front-Bench colleagues, but in this case I think I will just gently encourage my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State to join the hon. Member, if he is able to do so—I look forward to seeing the photographs.

We are exploring opportunities for breast cancer screening. There are difficulties in early screening because of dense breast tissue, but we are expanding screening where it provides support. In particular on breast screening, we are monitoring the emerging evidence from BRAID—breast screening risk adaptive imaging for density—trials, which target programmes at women with greater risk. We are also considering the findings from the £11 million EDITH—early detection using information technology in health—trial, testing how cutting-edge tools can be used to catch breast cancer cases earlier, particularly in younger women, like me, for whom a mammogram was not successful because of dense breast tissue.