§ Dr. Evan HarrisTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what targets have been set for patients with cancer having pre-planned and pre-booked care; what the baseline is for the target; in which document the target was published; and what progress has been made towards the target.[128911]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThe NHS Cancer Plan, published in September 2000, said that the cancer services collaborative would make booking of cancer services a priority, so that by 2004 every patient diagnosed with cancer will benefit from pre-planned and pre-booked care. The NHS Modernisation Agency's cancer services collaborative and the national booked admissions programme are working with national health service trusts to establish booking systems across1268W the NHS by 2005 and to develop systems for monitoring the booking of cancer patients by 2004 within this wider target.