Asked by: Abena Oppong-Asare (Labour - Erith and Thamesmead)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what priority his Department has accorded to ensuring that psychological support services are available for people diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The NHS Long Term Plan sets a clear ambition that where appropriate every person diagnosed with cancer should have access to personalised care by 2021. Over the next five years, Cancer Alliances will be embedding personalised care interventions, which will identify and address the changing needs of cancer patients from diagnosis onwards.
National Health Service mental health services, including Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services, have remained open for business throughout this time, including delivering support digitally and over the phone where possible. For those with severe needs or in crisis, NHS England has instructed all NHS mental health trusts to establish 24 hours a day, seven days a week mental health crisis lines, clearly accessible from trust websites.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
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 encourage people who have symptoms of ovarian cancer to contact their GP during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
On April 25, as part of the National Health Service ‘Help us help you’ campaign, NHS Chief Executive Sir Simon Stevens warned that delays in getting treatment due to COVID-19 fears pose a long-term risk to people’s health. It was stressed that the NHS is still there for people who need urgent and emergency services for cancer symptoms, as well as and other conditions.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
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 tackle delays to (a) diagnostic referrals and (b) courses of treatment for ovarian cancer as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The National Health Service’s recovery approach is looking to restore urgent cancer referrals and treatment to at least pre-pandemic levels, including the 62-day pathway, and ensure sufficient capacity is available to manage increased demands in the future.
The Cancer Recovery Taskforce met for the first time in September, where they took stock of the status of cancer services against recovery metrics on referrals, treatment and backlog levels. A national recovery plan will be developed for publication shortly.
Asked by: Abena Oppong-Asare (Labour - Erith and Thamesmead)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to ensure that people with ovarian cancer can continue to access treatment in the event of a second wave of covid-19.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Cancer Recovery Taskforce has been established, and met for the first time in September, where they took stock of the status of cancer services against recovery metrics on referrals, treatment and backlog levels. A national recovery plan will be developed for publication shortly.
NHS England and NHS Improvement are continuing to operate cancer surgical hubs, supported by the extension of the independent sector deal, to maintain a whole-system approach to managing cancer surgery at volume and in accordance with clinical priority.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to review the referral pathway to allow CA125 blood tests and ultrasound tests to be done at the same time, rather than sequentially, to diagnose and treat ovarian cancer.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There are currently no plans in place. The CA125 Blood test, followed by an ultrasound for raised CA125, is the current process recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.
Rapid Diagnostic Centres (RDCs) are being rolled out across England as part of the NHS Long Term Plan. One of the key principles of RDCs is the coordination of testing, including implementation of multiple-same day testing to provide timely diagnosis of cancer.
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 plans he has to ensure that people with suspected ovarian cancer receive a timely diagnosis.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
NHS England is establishing Rapid Diagnostic Centres across the country to bring together the latest diagnostic equipment and expertise. This builds on the Multidisciplinary Diagnostic Centre model, which focussed on diagnosing cancers where patients often present with non-specific symptoms. This is part of the NHS Long Term Plan, which set an ambition to see three quarters of all cancers detected at an early stage by 2028.
In September 2019 the Government announced funding of £200 million for new equipment to drive earlier diagnosis of cancer and improve survival. Over 300 diagnostic machines will be funded across the country, replacing outdated equipment with cutting edge technology.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
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 increase public awareness of the symptoms of ovarian cancer.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Public Health England (PHE) has run several Be Clear on Cancer (BCOC) campaigns to help improve early detection of cancer. In 2014 PHE ran a regional ovarian cancer campaign and, in 2017, a pilot which focussed on a range of abdominal symptoms, such as diarrhoea, bloating and discomfort that can be indicative of several cancers, including ovarian cancer.
PHE has undertaken data analysis and new research to determine the future direction of BCOC campaign activity and will also take into consideration the outcomes of these campaigns. Further information on the BCOC campaigns can be viewed at the following link:
http://www.ncin.org.uk/cancer_type_and_topic_specific_work/topic_specific_work/be_clear_on_cancer/
Decisions on which cancers BCOC campaigns should focus on are informed by a steering group with representatives from PHE, the Department, NHS England and NHS Improvement, primary and secondary care clinicians, and key voluntary sector organisations. These decisions are under constant review, informed by the available data and medical information resources.
Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Sunderland West)
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 mitigate the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the (a) diagnosis and treatment of and (b) support for women with ovarian cancer.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
On 8 June 2020, the National Cancer Director and the National Clinical Director for Cancer issued a further letter of guidance to NHS cancer services on ‘Second phase of NHS response to COVID-19 for cancer services’. The letter notes that the work for local systems and Cancer Alliances to identify ring-fenced diagnostic and surgical capacity for cancer should now be well advanced, so that referrals, diagnostics and treatment can be brought back to pre-pandemic levels at the earliest opportunity to minimise potential harm, and to reduce the scale of the post-pandemic surge in demand. The new guidance is based on three key principles: capacity, fairness and confidence. Cancer Alliances should work with their regional teams to provide such services.
Asked by: Lord Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Target Ovarian Cancer Voices of women with ovarian cancer: the coronavirus pandemic and its impact, published on 13 July; and what steps they are taking to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the diagnosis and treatment of, and support for, women with ovarian cancer.
Answered by Lord Bethell
No assessment has been made.
On 8 June 2020, the National Cancer Director and the National Clinical Director for Cancer issued a further letter of guidance to National Health Service cancer services on Second phase of NHS response to COVID-19 for cancer services. The letter notes that the work for local systems and Cancer Alliances to identify ring-fenced diagnostic and surgical capacity for cancer should now be well advanced, so that referrals, diagnostics and treatment can be brought back to pre-pandemic levels at the earliest opportunity to minimise potential harm, and to reduce the scale of the post-pandemic surge in demand. The new guidance is based on three key principles: capacity, fairness and confidence. Cancer Alliances should work with their regional teams to provide such services.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on achieving a shorter diagnostic pathway for ovarian cancer in England of the conclusions of the Target Ovarian Cancer report entitled Time is running out: the need for early diagnosis in ovarian cancer.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Improving faster and earlier diagnosis of cancer is a top priority for the National Health Service. To deliver the NHS Long Term Plan ambitions, NHS England and NHS Improvement have set up Rapid Diagnostic Centres that bring together diagnostic equipment and expertise to streamline diagnostic services for cancer, including cancers that are sometimes harder to diagnose, such as ovarian cancer.
NHS England and NHS Improvement encourage anyone with symptoms to continue to contact their general practitioner and have issued clear guidance to the NHS to maintain urgent referral and diagnostic services for suspected cancer.
The CA125 blood test, followed by an ultrasound for raised CA125 is the current process recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.