Labour’s cancer strategy fails to narrow survival gap with Europe

According to Department of Health estimates, 10,000 lives could be saved each year if the NHS in England matched the best in Europe, said the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

Key priorities for improving survival were improved public and GP awareness of the symptoms of cancer and earlier diagnosis, but there were “significant gaps” in the information gathered by the NHS about important aspects of cancer services.

While mortality rates have fallen and survival rates improved over the past decade, there remained “wide, unexplained variations” in performance around England, said the report.

NHS spending on cancer rose to £6.3bn a year by 2008/09, but the PAC report said there had been “significant progress in delivering important aspects of cancer services, with falling mortality rates and consistent achievement of the cancer waiting times targets”.

Since 2007, “improvements have also been made in reducing the average length of stay and numbers of patients treated as day cases”.

The report welcomed a “significant increase in resources” committed to cancer and the “clear direction and high-profile leadership” offered.

The PAC added: “We are concerned ... that early diagnosis does not happen often enough.”