Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to page 11 of Cancer52 and GRAIL's report on improving diagnosis for rare and less common cancers, published in February 2025, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the finding that 37% of people with rare and less common cancer say they saw their GP three or more times before they were diagnosed, compared to the national average of 21.7%; and what steps he is taking to reduce disparities in cancer diagnosis.

The Government is committed to supporting the National Health Service to diagnose cancer, including rare and less common cancers earlier and to treat them faster.

We are improving public awareness of cancer signs and symptoms, streamlining referral routes, and increasing the availability of diagnostic capacity through the roll-out of more community diagnostic centres. We are also investing an additional £889 million in general practice (GP) to reinforce the front door of the NHS, bringing total spend on the GP Contract to £13.2 billion in 2025/26. This is the biggest increase in over a decade.

We are committed to ensuring that GPs have the right training and systems to identify cancer. The Department will continue to look at opportunities to utilise artificial intelligence to transform diagnostic performance and ultimately bring down waiting times. The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including for rare and less common cancers. It will aim to speed up diagnosis and treatment and will ensure that all patients have access to the latest treatments and technology.