NHS funds boost will help more beat cancer
NORTH EAST HOSPITALS TO BENEFIT
A MULTI-MILLION-POUND injection to help catch and kill cancer in the North East has been announced by the Government.
The NHS funding will be used to upgrade cancer testing and detection technology at hospitals throughout the region.
It follows Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s £200m pledge last month for new state-of-the-art cancer screening equipment.
“This new state-of-the-art equipment for NHS trusts in the North East and Yorkshire will ensure doctors and clinicians can help even more people survive a cancer diagnosis and stop the disease as early as possible,” said Health Secretary Matt Hancock.
“It’s mission critical that the technology our NHS uses to prevent and diagnose cancer is brought into the 21st century.”
Both the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust are among 78 trusts in the UK which will be able to receive funding over the next two years.
The exact sum made available has not been made public yet.
However the Government says will be used to upgrade breast screening imaging and assessment equipment as well as acquiring CT and MRI scanners with lower radiation levels.
It is hoped the machines will improve screening and early diagnosis of cancer.
Newer machines would also be quicker to use as they can scan and construct images quicker, which could crucially lead to an earlier diagnosis.
“Cancer survival is at a record high thanks to better prevention, earlier diagnosis and world leading treatments in the NHS,” said Call Palmer, National Cancer Director at NHS England.
“This major investment in the best modern scanning technology will benefit patients in every part of England, helping us to achieve the NHS Long Term Plan’s ambitions of catching tens of thousands more cancers earlier when they are easier to treat, saving 55,000 more lives every year.”
Each trust has been allocated funding for new machines based on an assessment of local infrastructure and local population need.
“They will all contribute to the NHS Long Term Plan’s goal of catching three quarters of all cancers earlier when they are easier to treat.