Member

In 2011, the coalition Government published Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer. That strategy was followed in 2016 by Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes: a Strategy for England 2015-2020. In 2019, the long-term health plan for England made cancer a priority and included a headline ambition to diagnose 75% of cancers at stages 1 and 2. However well-intentioned those strategies were, not one of them has lived up to its promises. Cancer mortality rates in the UK are much higher than in other comparable countries, while survival rates are much lower. Cancer incidence is around 15% higher than when the 62-day standard was last met, and working-class communities are being failed most of all. The most deprived areas, including rural and coastal communities, often have fewer cancer consultants, leaving patients waiting longer. This all adds up to the chilling fact that someone living in Blackpool is almost twice as likely to die young from cancer than someone living in Harrow. Wherever in our country a person lives, they deserve the same shot at survival and quality of life as everyone else. Wealth should not dictate their health, and neither should their postcode.