Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total cost of treating patients who are obese and overweight; and what are the associated costs of treating (1) type 2 diabetes, (2) cardiovascular disease, (3) cerebrovascular disease, (4) musculoskeletal diseases including joint replacers, (5) cancer, and (6) dementia.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The department has reviewed and uses cost estimates published by Frontier Economics in 2022.
A study by Frontier Economics estimated that in 2021 obesity related ill-health cost the National Health Service £6.5 billion annually. This estimate includes costs associated with the following obesity related diseases: colorectal cancer; oesophageal cancer; kidney cancer; ovarian cancer; pancreatic cancer; coronary heart disease; stroke; type 2 diabetes; hypertension; knee osteoarthritis; endometrial cancer, and breast cancer.
The disease costs associated with obesity are calculated from the total annual costs per case, as shown in the following table:
Disease | Cost per case per year (2021) |
(1) Type 2 diabetes | £ 827.33 |
(2) Cardiovascular disease - Coronary heart disease (CHD) | £ 1,557.25 |
(2) Cardiovascular disease - Stroke | £ 247.55 |
(2) Risk of Cardiovascular disease - Hypertension | £ 453.91 |
(4) Musculoskeletal disease - Knee Osteoarthritis | £ 27,798.40 |
(5) Cancer - Colorectal cancer | £ 520.13 |
(5) Cancer - Oesophageal cancer | £ 545.06 |
(5) Cancer - Kidney cancer | £ 1,662.88 |
(5) Cancer - Ovarian cancer | £ 14,990.93 |
(5) Cancer - Pancreatic cancer | £ 7,447.27 |
(5) Cancer - Endometrial cancer | £ 520.13 |
(5) Cancer - Breast cancer | £ 545.06 |
The annual costs per case includes direct health-care costs including hospital care (both inpatient and outpatient), primary care, and medication, and they are not exclusively related to obesity associated cases. Indirect and social care costs are not included, which means the exclusion of these costs will probably underestimate total costs of disease events overall.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 18 April 2024 to Question 21865 on Bowel Cancer: Greater Manchester, what is the average waiting time to receive (a) an appointment for a coloscopy and (b) the results from a colonoscopy in (i) England, (ii) Greater Manchester and (iii) Stepping Hill Hospital.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Statistics on diagnostics waiting times via modality for England, and at commissioner and provider levels, is publicly available and can be accessed via the following link:
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the take-up rate for breast cancer screening was in (a) Lincolnshire and (b) the East Midlands in each of the last five years.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS Breast Screening Programme statistics are available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/breast-screening-programme
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of expanding the holistic care approach for cancer (a) care and (b) delivery to (i) prosthetic infection and (ii) other clinical conditions.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has not made a formal assessment of the merits of expanding the holistic approach, used for cancer, to prosthetic infection and other clinical conditions, however the National Health Service is working towards a holistic approach in infection prevention and control, and in long-term conditions. This includes improving perioperative care for surgical clinical care pathways, including for prosthetic infections, whereby patients receive proactive, personalised support to optimise their health before surgery.
The NHS works hard to deliver care to meet people’s needs as far as possible, given this can have a significant impact on their experience and quality of life. Cancer Alliances across England are working to ensure that every person receives personalised care and support from cancer diagnosis onwards. This involves holistic need assessments to ensure people's physical, practical, emotional, and social needs are identified and addressed at the earliest opportunity. It also involves accessible information about emotional support, coping with side effects, financial advice, getting back to work, and making healthy lifestyle choices, before, during, and after treatment.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an estimate of the cost to the public purse of treating (a) smoking related illnesses and (b) alcohol related illnesses in the last 12 months.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Tobacco is uniquely harmful, with no safe level of smoking, and no other consumer product that kills two thirds of its long-term users. It causes one in four cancer deaths, including 70% of lung cancer cases, and takes approximately 80,000 lives every year. The latest estimates from Action on Smoking and Health put the cost of smoking in England at over £21 billion. This includes an annual £18 billion loss to productivity through smoking related lost earnings, unemployment, and early death, as well as costs to the National Health Service and social care of £3 billion.
The Department estimated the annual cost of alcohol consumption to the NHS to be £4 billion in 2021. The previous estimate published alongside the Government’s 2012 Alcohol Strategy was updated to reflect inflation. The Department has begun a review of existing methods and evidence to update this estimate. The estimated costs of alcohol and smoking related illnesses to the NHS were not designed to be compared, and are based on different methods, data sources, and time periods.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that people who require enzyme replacement therapy receive that medication in a timely manner.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of the supply issues with the three enzyme replacement therapies, Creon 10,000 gastro-resistant capsules, Creon 25,000 gastro-resistant capsules, and Nutrizym 22 capsules. These are due to manufacturing and active pharmaceutical ingredient constraints. The Department will be issuing updated guidance to healthcare professionals regarding treatment of patients while there is a disruption to the supply of these pancreatic enzyme replacement therapies. We are having regular conversations with the suppliers of these products to help drive the resolution of these issues as quickly as possible, for example by expediting orders and increasing forecasts. We are also working with specialist importers to source unlicensed imports from abroad.
Whilst we can’t always prevent supply issues, we have a range of well-established tools and processes to mitigate risks to patients. These include close and regular engagement with suppliers, use of alternative strengths or forms of a medicine to allow patients to remain on the same product, expediting regulatory procedures, sourcing unlicensed imports from abroad, adding products to the restricted exports and hoarding list, use of Serious Shortage Protocols, and issuing National Health Service communications to provide management advice and information on the issue to healthcare professionals, so they can advise and support their patients.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the availability of enzyme replacement therapy.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are aware of the supply issues with the three enzyme replacement therapies, Creon 10,000 gastro-resistant capsules, Creon 25,000 gastro-resistant capsules, and Nutrizym 22 capsules. These are due to manufacturing and active pharmaceutical ingredient constraints. The Department will be issuing updated guidance to healthcare professionals regarding treatment of patients while there is a disruption to the supply of these pancreatic enzyme replacement therapies. We are having regular conversations with the suppliers of these products to help drive the resolution of these issues as quickly as possible, for example by expediting orders and increasing forecasts. We are also working with specialist importers to source unlicensed imports from abroad.
Whilst we can’t always prevent supply issues, we have a range of well-established tools and processes to mitigate risks to patients. These include close and regular engagement with suppliers, use of alternative strengths or forms of a medicine to allow patients to remain on the same product, expediting regulatory procedures, sourcing unlicensed imports from abroad, adding products to the restricted exports and hoarding list, use of Serious Shortage Protocols, and issuing National Health Service communications to provide management advice and information on the issue to healthcare professionals, so they can advise and support their patients.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an estimate of the number of hospital admissions for issues related to cigar smoking in the last (a) 12 months, (b) five years and (c) 20 years.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Smoking is responsible for approximately 80,000 deaths a year in the United Kingdom, and causes around one in four UK cancer deaths. It also costs our country £21.8 billion a year, and puts a huge burden on the National Health Service. The latest estimates from Action on Smoking and Health put the cost of smoking to the NHS at £1.9 billion a year.
All tobacco products are harmful. Tobacco smoke from cigars leads to the same types of diseases as cigarette smoke. Research has shown that using smokeless tobacco raises the risk of both mouth and oesophageal cancer. Data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ Smoking Profile showed that in 2019/20 there were an estimated 448,031 smoking attributable hospital admissions, but we cannot differentiate by the type of tobacco.
As such, the Department does not hold data on the annual costs to the NHS of cigar smoking and snuff taking, nor data on the number of hospital admissions for issues related to cigar smoking or snuff taking in the last 12 months, five years, or 20 years.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an estimate of the number of hospital admissions for issues related to the taking of snuff in the last (a) 12 months, (b) five years and (c) 20 years.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Smoking is responsible for approximately 80,000 deaths a year in the United Kingdom, and causes around one in four UK cancer deaths. It also costs our country £21.8 billion a year, and puts a huge burden on the National Health Service. The latest estimates from Action on Smoking and Health put the cost of smoking to the NHS at £1.9 billion a year.
All tobacco products are harmful. Tobacco smoke from cigars leads to the same types of diseases as cigarette smoke. Research has shown that using smokeless tobacco raises the risk of both mouth and oesophageal cancer. Data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ Smoking Profile showed that in 2019/20 there were an estimated 448,031 smoking attributable hospital admissions, but we cannot differentiate by the type of tobacco.
As such, the Department does not hold data on the annual costs to the NHS of cigar smoking and snuff taking, nor data on the number of hospital admissions for issues related to cigar smoking or snuff taking in the last 12 months, five years, or 20 years.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an estimate of the annual cost to the NHS of (a) cigar smoking and (b) snuff taking.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Smoking is responsible for approximately 80,000 deaths a year in the United Kingdom, and causes around one in four UK cancer deaths. It also costs our country £21.8 billion a year, and puts a huge burden on the National Health Service. The latest estimates from Action on Smoking and Health put the cost of smoking to the NHS at £1.9 billion a year.
All tobacco products are harmful. Tobacco smoke from cigars leads to the same types of diseases as cigarette smoke. Research has shown that using smokeless tobacco raises the risk of both mouth and oesophageal cancer. Data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ Smoking Profile showed that in 2019/20 there were an estimated 448,031 smoking attributable hospital admissions, but we cannot differentiate by the type of tobacco.
As such, the Department does not hold data on the annual costs to the NHS of cigar smoking and snuff taking, nor data on the number of hospital admissions for issues related to cigar smoking or snuff taking in the last 12 months, five years, or 20 years.