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 adequacy of rates of early (a) detection and (b) treatment of brain tumours.

Survival rates for brain cancer, as with several other cancers, remain too low. Early diagnosis is crucial for improving outcomes, as the chances of survival are significantly higher when cancer is detected at an early stage. That is why early diagnosis remains a key priority for the Government.

We are committed to the full rollout of non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways across England, which are designed to speed up the diagnosis of cancer. As of now, there are 115 live NSS services in operation.

NSS pathways provide a diagnostic route for patients presenting with symptoms that could indicate cancer but which do not clearly point to a specific cancer type. These pathways complement existing cancer diagnostic pathways and include elements that can also enhance current models of care.

In addition, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has announced that a new National Cancer Plan for England will be published later this year. The National Cancer Plan will have patients at its heart and will cover the entirety of the cancer pathway, from referral and diagnosis to treatment and aftercare. It will seek to improve every aspect of cancer care, to improve the experience and outcomes for people with cancer. Our goal is to reduce the number of lives lost to cancer over the next ten years, including for brain cancer.