Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will prioritise (a) research into, (b) diagnosis of and (c) treatment of pancreatic cancer in the new National Cancer Plan.

The National Cancer Plan will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and ongoing care, as well as prevention, and research and innovation. It will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care to better the experience and outcomes for people with cancer, including patients with pancreatic cancer.

NHS England is providing a route into pancreatic cancer surveillance for those at high-risk, to identify lesions before they develop into cancer. NHS England is additionally creating pathways to support faster referral routes for people with non-specific symptoms, and is increasing direct access for general practitioners to diagnostic tests.

The plan will include further details on how we will speed up diagnosis and treatment, ensure patients have access to the latest treatments and technology, and ultimately bring this country’s cancer survival rates back up to the standards of the best in the world.