Cancer: Health

(asked on 10th March 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to (a) measure and (b) improve the quality of life for people diagnosed with one of the less survivable cancers, such as (i) brain, (ii) liver, (iii) oesophageal, (iv) stomach, (v) lung and (vi) pancreatic cancer.


Answered by
Jo Churchill Portrait
Jo Churchill
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This question was answered on 16th March 2020

A pilot project to introduce a national Quality of Life metric has been underway since 2017. This pilot project has tested approaches to collecting quality of life information through a survey. NHS England and NHS Improvement are carrying out more survey testing of other cancer types and in more hospital, trusts using a refined method based on feedback from the pilot. Information from these tests will be used to decide on a final roll out model.

The national Cancer Quality of Life metric will formally launch later this year.

By 2021, every person diagnosed with cancer will have access, where appropriate, to personalised care, including a needs assessment, a care plan and health and wellbeing information and support. The needs assessment guides a conversation about the person’s holistic needs (physical, psychosocial, financial and social) in order to identify any concerns, including psychological and emotional.

Over the next three years every patient with cancer will receive a Personalised Care and Support Plan based on holistic needs assessment, end of treatment summaries and health and wellbeing information and support.

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