Colorectal Cancer: Screening

(asked on )

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that pathology and endoscopy staff are supported to deal with an increase in demand for services as a result of lowering the bowel cancer screening age to 50.


Answered by
Steve Brine Portrait
Steve Brine
This question was answered on 16th October 2018

We are considering how best to extend bowel cancer screening to men and women from age 50, including workforce implications. However, Health Education England published its first ever Cancer Workforce Plan in December 2017, which commits to the expansion of capacity and skills including an ambition to increase improved working practices, attracting qualified people back to the National Health Service through domestic and international recruitment. This will include 200 additional clinical endoscopists (in addition to 200 already committed to), 316 more gastroenterologists and 94 full time equivalent additional histopathologists to support an increase in the capacity for earlier diagnosis.

Reticulating Splines