25.10.16
RCR: UK radiotherapy upgrade welcome, but not enough to support service
Radiotherapy machines that have been in use for over fifteen years will be replaced as part of a £130m investment by NHS England, but the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) has said the funding allocation does not go far enough to support a service fit for the 21st century.
Radiotherapy in the NHS, which is the treatment for around four in ten cancer patients, uses machines called LINACs. They are meant to be replaced after about 10 years in operation, but have not received major investment since the early 2000s.
Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, said: “Today we’re kick-starting the biggest single upgrade in NHS cancer treatment for at least the last fifteen years.
“Modern LINACs and software will mean hundreds of thousands of patients across England will now benefit from huge advances in precision cancer treatment.”
The investment will pay for over 100 replacements or upgrades of radiotherapy machines in hospitals around England in the next two years.
It will introduce recent advances in radiotherapy, which use cutting-edge imaging and computing technology to target radiation doses at cancer cells more precisely. This will enable better outcomes, reduce side effects for patients, and cut long-term cuts to the NHS.
But the RCR has said that, while the funding is welcome, it will not allow the improved outcomes envisaged by the English Cancer Strategy to be realised. It added that the investment, compared to the population, is less than one third of that pledged by the Scottish government earlier this year.
Dr Jeanette Dickson, vice-president of clinical oncology for the RCR, said: “Although the funding announced is to be welcomed, if the government wishes to achieve world-class cancer outcomes by 2020, significantly more investment in radiotherapy services is required, at least up to the equivalent level announced for Scotland.”
The £130m fund is half of the five year modernisation programme recommended by the independent Cancer Taskforce. At its Annual General Meeting today, NHS England will provide an update on its other areas of progress with implementing the taskforce.
These include launching three cancer vanguard sites in London and Manchester, launching a new Cancer Dashboard, and beginning to test a faster 28 day diagnosis standard and a quality of life indicator.
Professor Nick Slevin, chair of the Radiotherapy Clinical Reference Group, said: “There has been a big focus recently across England on expanding access to chemotherapy, including the repurposed NHS cancer drugs fund, but it is radiotherapy that often is actually curative for our patients. State-of-the-art radiotherapy equipment will result in improved cure rates and less side effects for patients.”
Sir Harpal Kumar, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, who led the cancer taskforce, said the announcement on new radiotherapy machines is “fantastic news”.
“Quickly replacing older radiotherapy machines and giving patients the most modern treatment that will give them the best chance of survival, while also reducing side effects,” he added.
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