Cancer checks double in 10 years

NHS England has announced that the number of people receiving potentially lifesaving NHS cancer checks in England has more than doubled compared to ten years ago.

114,108 more people were checked for cancer in April compared to the same month a decade ago. In April 2023, there were 218,060 urgent referrals for cancer, compared to 103,952 in April 2013.

More peopler being treated for cancer and more people than ever before are being diagnosed earlier thanks to efforts to encourage people to come forward for checks. Cancer survival rates are also increasing.

Over coming years, the NHS will be investing £2.3 billion to expand diagnostics services and £1.5billion for treatment.

Dame Cally Palmer, national cancer director for NHS England, said: “We are committed to checking and diagnosing more cancers at an earlier stage so that we can save more lives.

“There is still have a long way to go, but the NHS is making great progress in cancer care, and advances in diagnosis and treatment have driven an increase in cancer survival rates over the last three decades.

“Due to the hard work of NHS staff and the impact of our public awareness campaigns, last year alone more than 2.8 million people received urgent diagnosis for cancer, with over 328,000 starting treatment and a higher proportion than ever being diagnosed at an early stage – making it a record year for delivering cancer care. That record year comes despite huge demand and pressure on our staff and is an incredible achievement.”