Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of AI tools in supporting the treatment and management of cancer in the NHS; and what steps they are taking to ensure that those tools improve patient outcomes while maintaining safety and data protection standards.

The Government recognises the significant potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to support the treatment and management of cancer across the National Health Service, particularly through improving diagnostic accuracy, supporting clinical decision making, and helping clinicians prioritise care more effectively.

The Department is focusing the £21 million AI Diagnostic Fund on the deployment of technologies in key, high-demand areas, such as chest X-Ray and chest computed tomography scans, to enable faster diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer in over half of acute trusts in England.

The Government and NHS England are committed to the safe, ethical, and evidence-based adoption of AI. All AI technologies used in the NHS must meet robust regulatory requirements, including approval from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulation Agency, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Health Research Authority, and the Care Quality Commission, as well as UK General Data Protection Regulations, and the Data Protection Act 2018.

NHS organisations remain responsible for deciding whether to deploy AI technologies locally, based on clinical need, safety, value for money, and alignment with national standards. The Government will continue to work closely with NHS England, regulators, and clinicians to ensure AI is used in ways that improve cancer outcomes while maintaining the highest standards of safety, transparency, and data protection.