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Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support research on (a) the causes of and (b) treatments for acute myeloid leukaemia.

Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department invests £1.5 billion per year on health research, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR research expenditure for all cancers was over £121.8 million for 2022/23, and more is spent on cancer than any other disease group.

The Government, through the NIHR, is committed to improving research into cancers with the poorest survival rates, such as acute myeloid leukaemia, by funding high quality, timely research that leads to improved outcomes for patients and the public and makes the health and social care system more efficient, effective, and safe. Research evidence is vital for improving treatments and outcomes for people, including those with pancreatic cancer and other less survivable cancers. The following table shows NIHR research spend on diagnosis, treatment, and both diagnosis and treatment of blood cancers, including leukaemia, since 2018:

In 2023, the Government awarded £2 million to new interdisciplinary research teams tackling hard to treat cancers, via the Medical Research Council’s two-day cancer sandpit strategic funding opportunity, focused on technological innovation for understanding cancers with the poorest survival rates.

The NIHR continues to encourage and welcome applications for research into any aspect of human health, including acute myeloid leukaemia. All applications are assessed for funding by peer review committees. The level of research spend in a particular area is driven by factors including the quality of the proposals and their scientific potential. All applications for research into pancreatic cancer and other less survivable cancers made through open competition have been funded.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support biomedical research into (a) long covid and (b) myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department funds research on health and social care through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including long COVID and myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The NIHR and the Medical Research Council (MRC) are committed to funding high-quality research to understand the causes, consequences, and treatment of long COVID and ME/CFS, and are actively exploring next steps for research in these areas.

Over the last five years, the Government, through the NIHR and the MRC, has invested over £50 million into long COVID research through two specific research calls. The projects funded aim to improve our understanding of the diagnosis and underlying mechanisms of the disease, and the effectiveness of both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies and interventions, as well as to evaluate clinical care.

The MRC has provided £4.15 million of ME/CFS research funding since 2013, including £3.19 million jointly awarded with the NIHR for the DecodeME project, which aims to find genetic risk factors of ME/CFS to better understand the disease and ultimately to find treatments. The NIHR has committed approximately £3.9 million of programme funding over the same period.

As findings emerge from current research, we encourage researchers to apply for funding to build on and develop the newly established infrastructure, partnerships, and research capabilities. Government research funders remain available to support long COVID and ME/CFS researchers in their applications for funding.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will have discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential merits of increasing funding for new radiotherapy technologies.

Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Office for Life Sciences is a joint unit sitting in this Department and the Department for Health and Social Care. It exists to power the government’s health and growth missions and improve patient outcomes.

The Government does not generally ringfence funding for particular areas of research but continues to fund research for innovative radiotherapy approaches through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). Since 2021, their Medical Research Council has awarded £15 million for cutting edge approaches such as FLASH photon therapy, and Innovate UK has invested £3.2 million to projects through the Biomedical Catalyst, including nanoparticle enhanced radiotherapy.

In 2023, UKRI invested £32 million in the National Total Body PET Imaging Platform to enhance national capabilities in the use of radioactive tracers.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing Herbie’s Law, a practical framework to (a) enable the long-term phase-out of animal experiments in medical research and (b) support scientists with the transition to (i) computer modelling, (ii) organ-on-a-chip technology and (iii) other human-specific methods.

Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government has committed to partnering with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the requirements for phasing out of animal testing. Any policy changes as a result of this work will be assessed appropriately.

As yet, no assessment has been made of the potential merits of introducing Herbie’s Law.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department are taking to support (a) the Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board and (b) people diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England is responsible for allocating funding to integrated care boards (ICBs), including the Humber and North Yorkshire ICB, which are in turn responsible for commissioning specialist myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), services that meet the needs of their population, subject to local prioritisation and funding.

The process of commissioning services should take into account best practice guidance, such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidance on ME/CFS diagnosis and management, published in October 2021. The NICE guidelines provide recommendation on principles of care for people with severe ME/CFS, including hospital care, and adapting a multidisciplinary approach involving access to a range of health and social care professionals based on needs.

The Department has funded the £3.2 million DecodeME study with the Medical Research Council to understand the causes and consequences of, and find treatments for, ME/CFS. This study aims to understand if there is a genetic component to the condition and, in doing so, increase our understanding of ME/CFS to support the development of diagnostic tests and targeted treatments.

A public consultation on the interim delivery plan for ME/CFS was run in 2023, and it is a priority of ours to publish the response to this consultation. Departmental officials are in the process of finalising a report summarising the responses. The consultation responses, alongside continued stakeholder engagement, will inform the development of the final delivery plan, which we aim to publish in the winter of 2024/25. The plan will focus on boosting research, improving attitudes and education, and bettering the lives of people with this debilitating disease.

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