Radiotherapy

That this House acknowledges the pressing need to reduce treatment waiting times for cancer patients across the country, given only 58.2% of patients begin treatment within the recommended maximum 62 days from referral; recognises the need for a National Cancer Control Plan that improves cancer outcomes by delivering patient-centred, equitable and data-informed cancer control that empowers clinical frontline staff; further recognises that radiotherapy is a key cancer treatment required by 50% of all cancer patients; notes that with the integration of modern radiotherapy technology, IT, and AI developments, radiotherapy has the potential to significantly reduce waiting times and improve survival in a cost-effective way; further notes with concern that many radiotherapy treatment machines are currently operating beyond their recommended lifespan of 10 years, with 74 due to be replaced by the end of 2024; particularly regrets that millions of people live outside the recommended 45-minute travel time for treatment, especially those in rural areas like Westmorland and Lonsdale, where average travel time is between two and four hours per treatment; further acknowledges the importance of increasing radiotherapy access from the current 27% to the international standard of 50-63% to ensure enough treatment capacity for NHS early diagnosis ambitions to translate into early stage cures; and therefore calls on the Government to ensure that sufficient NHS capital investment is directed towards unlocking the full potential of radiotherapy as a high-tech, cost-effective, and vital cancer treatment method as part of creating a National Cancer Control Plan, which will significantly reduce the backlog.