Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what financial support his Department provides for early-phase trials into (a) neuroblastoma and (b) other rare paediatric cancers.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology invests approximately £200 million into cancer research annually via UK Research and Innovation, particularly via Innovate UK and the Medical Research Council (MRC). In parallel, the Department of Health and Social Care funds cancer research via the National Institute for Health and Care Research and invested £133 million in 2023/24. UKRI and NIHR does not ringfence funding for specific cancer types. However, from 2020-2024 MRC committed £982,632 to research on neuroblastoma, this includes a project to develop and clinically test a new probe to diagnose and aid resection of tumours in children.