Lib Dems announce plan to give every cancer patient a dedicated specialist nurse

EMBARGO: 22:30 Tuesday 25th June

• Liberal Democrats to double the number of specialist cancer nurses in England over the next Parliament, giving every patient personalised care

• New data shows only 4% of NHS Trusts hit the 62-day cancer treatment target last year

• More than 100,000 patients in England waited longer than two months to start cancer treatment in 2023/24, the worst on record

• Lib Dem leader Ed Davey says “My life was turned upside down by cancer - so this is personal”

The Liberal Democrats have announced a plan to give every cancer patient a dedicated specialist nurse supporting them throughout their treatment.

This would be achieved by recruiting 3,400 additional cancer nurses in England, doubling the existing workforce by the end of the next Parliament. This would be backed by an investment of £130 million to cover training costs, as well as an additional £240 million a year by 2028-29 to meet the employment costs of the new nurses. 

Currently a lack of specialist nurses means cancer patients wait too long, see multiple different specialists and have to travel long distances to access lifesaving treatment. According to Macmillan Cancer Support, there is only one lung cancer nurse in England for every 161 people diagnosed with lung cancer and 117 people per breast cancer nurse.

Boosting the number of specialists would provide people living with cancer a single point of contact who can deliver personalised and more effective care throughout their treatment, and provide vital emotional support during a traumatic period. Specialist nurses also help to reduce the number of emergency admissions, the length of hospital stay and the number of follow-up appointments.

The Liberal Democrats have previously set out plans to introduce a legal right to start cancer treatment within 62 days of an urgent referral, alongside purchasing 200 new radiotherapy machines.

It comes after new figures from the House of Commons Library found only 5 out of 133 NHS Trusts met targets to treat cancer patients within 62 days last year. The worst rate in the country was at Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust, where just 22% of patients started treatment within 62 days. Other NHS Trusts with poor rates included the Royal Papworth in Cambridgeshire at 32%, the Royal Wolverhampton (43%), and Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals (44%).

Every four-week delay to starting cancer treatment is associated with a 10% decrease in survival and the number of people in the UK living with cancer is set to rise to 4 million by 2030. Cancer targets for diagnosis and starting treatment have not been met since 2015 and last year was the worst on record for patients starting cancer treatment on time, with more than 100,000 patients in England waiting longer than 62 days to start treatment. 

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

“Every day counts in a battle against cancer. But far too many people are being tragically let down and left waiting too long to start treatment after diagnosis. By recruiting more specialist nurses, we would give cancer patients a single point of contact to support them through one of the most difficult periods of their lives.

“Like millions of people, my life was turned upside down by cancer - so this is personal. The Liberal Democrats will make improving cancer care a top priority, fighting every day for better care for you and your loved ones.” 

ENDS

Notes to Editor:

The Liberal Democrat plan to recruit an additional 3,400 cancer nurses in England will be backed by an investment of £130 million to cover training costs, as well as an additional £240 million a year by 2028-29 to meet the employment costs of the new nurses. 

This is part of the party’s spending package for the NHS, public health and social care, worth £8.4 billion a year in 2028-29, which would be paid for by reversing Conservative tax cuts for the big banks and fairly reforming Capital Gains Tax, closing loopholes exploited by the super-wealthy.

The Liberal Democrat manifesto can be viewed here and the manifesto costings can be found here.

House of Commons Library research:

The House of Commons Library research can be found here.

In 2023/24 the NHS changed their data set, so 2023/24 figures are not directly comparable with previous years, but between 2015/16 and 2022/23 the number of patients waiting over 62-days had risen every single year. In 2015/16 the number waiting more than two-months was 24,000, in 2022/23 it was 71,000. Under the new data set, the figure waiting over 62-days in 2023/24 was 102,000.