Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of existing cancer stages.

Earlier diagnosis remains a key priority for the Government for stageable and non-stageable cancer types. For stageable cancers, there is a clear link between early staging and increased survival rates. Earlier diagnosis is also linked to better outcomes for non-stageable cancers. Many of the actions we are implementing to improve the earlier staging of stageable cancers, such as improving awareness of cancer signs and symptoms, and increasing referral routes and the availability of diagnostics, also have a positive impact on non-stageable cancer outcomes.

Furthermore, to support the early diagnosis of non-stageable cancer types, NHS England currently implements non-specific symptom pathways for patients who present with non-specific symptoms, or combinations thereof, that can indicate several different cancers. From NHS England’s national evaluation, blood cancers are one of the most common cancer types diagnosed through these pathways.

The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including those with non-stageable cancer types. It will aim to speed up diagnosis and treatment and will ensure that all patients have access to the latest treatments and technology.