Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what additional support his Department is providing to people being treated with chemotherapy during the covid-19 outbreak.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guidance NG161 was published in April 2020 to support clinicians in the management of patients requiring systemic treatment through the pandemic. The guidance, developed by clinicians, provides advice on alternative chemotherapy treatment approaches to reduce the risk of infection to patients and avoid unnecessary admissions and visits to hospital where possible.

On 3 August 2020, NHS England and NHS Improvement announced that ‘COVID-19 friendly’ cancer treatments that are safe for patients during the pandemic will be expanded and extended through a £160 million initiative. The funding will pay for drugs that treat patients without having such a big impact on their immune system or offer other benefits such as fewer hospital visits.

Thousands of patients have already benefitted from 50 treatments approved for use as ‘swaps’ for existing drugs and more have become available thanks to a series of deals struck between the National Health Service and pharmaceutical companies.