78 trusts to receive new cancer screening machines

The Department of Health and Social Care has announced that 78 NHS trusts across the country will receive funding for new machines that will improve patient experience and lead to earlier diagnosis of cancer.

The new machines, which are the result of the £200 million new cancer screening equipment pledge by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in September, will improve screening and early diagnosis of cancer, and are part of the government’s commitment to ensure 55,000 more people survive cancer each year.

The trusts will receive funding over the next two years to replace, refurbish and upgrade: CT and MRI scanners – bringing in alternatives with lower radiation levels, as well as breast screening imaging and assessment equipment.

It is hoped that replacing and upgrading machines will improve efficiency by: making them easier to use; being quicker to scan and construct images; and reducing the need to re-scan.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “This new state-of-the-art equipment for 78 trusts across England will ensure doctors and clinicians can help even more people survive a cancer diagnosis and stop the disease as early as possible. It is mission critical that the technology our NHS uses to prevent and diagnose cancer is brought into the 21st century. We have backed the roll-out of these new machines with £200 million in funding, as part of our Long Term Plan, backed by an extra £33.9 billion a year.”