Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on reviewing the funding of research to improve (a) treatment and (b) outcomes for people diagnosed with lobular breast cancer.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
The Department spends £1.5 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), with cancer being the largest area of spend at over £121.8 million in 2022/23. The NIHR spends more on cancer than any other disease group, reflecting its high priority. Our investments in cancer, including lobular breast cancer, are pivotal to informing efforts to improve cancer prevention, treatment, and outcomes.
We are proud to have invested £29 million into the Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden NIHR Biological Research Centre in 2022, supporting their efforts to strengthen research into cancer, including lobular breast cancer. This is complemented by wider investments into breast cancer research including, for example, a £1.3 million project to determine whether an abbreviated form of breast magnetic resonance imaging can detect breast cancers missed by screening through mammography, again including lobular breast cancer.
The NIHR continues to encourage and welcome applications for research into any aspect of human health, including lobular breast cancer. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality.
Asked by: Kirsteen Sullivan (Labour (Co-op) - Bathgate and Linlithgow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with healthcare stakeholders on steps to improve Lobular cancer (a) diagnostics and (b) research funding.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
Following publication of the 10-Year Health Plan later this year, we will develop a new national cancer plan. The cancer plan will include more details about how to improve outcomes for all tumour types, including lobular breast cancer. We plan to engage with a wide range of cancer partners on the national cancer plan, including charities and patient representative bodies.
Mentions:
1: Helen Hayes (Lab - Dulwich and West Norwood) are able to do the research to understand the complete pathology of lobular breast cancer—research that - Speech Link
2: Daniel Francis (Lab - Bexleyheath and Crayford) research about outcomes for and recurrences of lobular breast cancer. - Speech Link
3: John Milne (LD - Horsham) Breast Cancer Now research shows that the cost of breast cancer to the UK economy is £2.6 billion. - Speech Link
4: Luke Evans (Con - Hinckley and Bosworth) biomedical research centre to support research into cancer, including lobular breast cancer. - Speech Link
5: Karin Smyth (Lab - Bristol South) Research UK lobular breast cancer is the second most common type of breast cancer. - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: Scott Arthur (Lab - Edinburgh South West) Inflammatory breast cancer accounts for 2% of breast cancer diagnoses in the UK each year, but 10% of - Speech Link
2: Monica Harding (LD - Esher and Walton) Despite being the second most common form of breast cancer, lobular breast cancer is in many ways treated - Speech Link
3: Monica Harding (LD - Esher and Walton) She explained to me that because almost all breast cancer research is based on the ductal variant, women - Speech Link
4: Ashley Dalton (Lab - West Lancashire) rare cancers, including lobular breast cancer, for which we are supporting research through the research - Speech Link
Found: Breast cancer .
Asked by: Satvir Kaur (Labour - Southampton Test)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help improve lobular breast cancer outcomes.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
Improving early diagnosis of cancer, including lobular breast cancer, is a priority for NHS England. We will improve cancer survival rates and hit all National Health Service cancer waiting time targets, so that no patient waits longer than they should.
The NHS Breast Screening Programme offers all women in England between the ages of 50 years old and their 71st birthday the opportunity to be screened every three years for breast cancer, to help detect abnormalities and intervene early to reduce the number of lives lost to invasive breast cancer.
The Department invests £1.5 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR research expenditure for all cancers was £133 million in 2023/24, reflecting its high priority.
We are proud to have invested £29 million into the Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden NIHR Biological Research Centre in 2022, supporting their efforts to strengthen research into cancer, including lobular breast cancer. Wider investments into breast cancer research include a £1.3 million project to determine whether an abbreviated form of breast magnetic resonance imaging can detect breast cancers missed by screening through mammography, including lobular breast cancer.
The NIHR funds research on cancer prevention, detection, diagnosis, and treatment and care, which saves lives. NIHR funds research in response to proposals received and would welcome applications from researchers on lobular breast cancer.
Found: Breast cancer (QS12 ).
Apr. 11 2025
Source Page: Early and locally advanced breast cancer: diagnosis and managementFound: Breast cancer (neoadjuvant & OFS): advisory committee – interests register 1 of 21 Breast
Mentions:
1: Wera Hobhouse (LD - Bath) Let me start with breast cancer. - Speech Link
2: Paul Kohler (LD - Wimbledon) Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, with one woman diagnosed every 10 minutes. - Speech Link
3: Luke Evans (Con - Hinckley and Bosworth) We need support for both lobular and ductal breast cancer. - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: Andrew Gwynne (LAB - Gorton and Denton) support bereaved families and drive vital research in this area—Macmillan, Cancer Research UK, Cancer52 - Speech Link
2: Wera Hobhouse (LD - Bath) breast cancer screenings are given only to women aged 40 and over. - Speech Link
3: Clive Jones (LD - Wokingham) Shaun Walsh of Cancer Research UK first raised with me the need for a dedicated cancer plan, and it has - Speech Link
4: Jim Shannon (DUP - Strangford) Cancer Research UK alone has invested more than £4 billion in research over the last 10 years. - Speech Link