§ Dr. GibsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidelines he has issued to(a) GPs and (b) health authorities regarding the diagnosis guidelines issued in the paper entitled, "Beating Bowel Cancer"; and if he will make a statement; [118959]
(2) what assessment his Department has made of the diagnosis guidelines issued by the paper entitled "Beating Bowel Cancer"; and if he will make a statement. [118960]
§ Yvette Cooper"Beating Bowel Cancer" aims to raise awareness of the symptoms of colorectal cancer. The Department published cancer referral guidelines, including those for suspected colorectal cancer, on the NHSWeb and the internet on 31 March. We are also sending copies to all general practitioners in England as well as to health authorities, National Health Service trusts and primary care groups. These guidelines will help GPs to identify more easily those patients with suspected cancer so that they can be referred promptly and appropriately for specialist investigation.
§ Dr. GibsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS spent on supportive care treatments for cancer for each of the last five years; broken down by tumour type. [118963]
§ Yvette CooperSupportive treatments for cancer sufferers are important for maintaining quality of life for cancer patients by alleviating pain, countering the side effects of other treatments and for secondary prevention.
Information on spend on cancer treatment in supportive care is not currently available.
The Department has commissioned work to improve overall National Health Service information, including national statistics on hospital prescribing, which will give us a more accurate method of recording hospital expenditure in cancer treatment.
§ Dr. GibsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received regarding the Medical Research Council's proposed CR08 trial into the treatment of colorectal cancer; and if he will make a statement. [118958]
§ Yvette CooperThe Medical Research Council are still finalising the details of this trial to assess the role of two new agents in the management of advanced colorectal cancer.
The arrangements for National Health Service support for the trial will be handled through the existing mechanisms laid out in the "Concordat Between the Health Departments and the Medical Research Council, 1997", and "Health Service Guidelines, HSG (97)32", copies of which are available in the Library.