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Charity welcomes UK government’s announcement of National Cancer Plan on World Cancer Day

New cancer plan for England aims to reduce the number of lives lost to cancer and improve survival rates.

Author: The WCRF team
Published: 4 February 2025

At an event to mark World Cancer Day, the Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, announced the development of a National Cancer Plan for England.

He also launched of a new, world-leading trial that is testing AI tools to diagnose breast cancer cases earlier. More than 700,000 women are expected to take part.

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in women, with more than 59,000 people being diagnosed in the UK in 2021.

Alongside this, Streeting announced a new initiative called the UK Collaborative for Cancer Clinical Trial Research, which will help to maximise opportunities for the UK to lead in clinical research.

It is being hosted by the Association of Medical Research Charities, of which World Cancer Research Fund is a member.
Responding to the launch of the Government’s consultation on the National Cancer Plan for England, World Cancer Research Fund’s Executive Director of Research and Policy Dr Giota Mitrou, said:

“Around 40% of cancer cases can be prevented by making our lives and the environment we live in healthier.

“We therefore warmly welcome the UK Government’s consultation on the National Cancer Plan for England and commitment to publishing the Plan this year. Marking a pivotal opportunity to shift the dial from sickness to prevention, the Government must ensure the Plan is truly transformative and achieves a step change in cancer prevention so that more people can live free of cancer.

“The launch of a new UK Collaborative for Cancer Clinical Research also provides a welcome focus to maximise opportunities for cancer research. As a member of the Association for Medical Research Charities leading this work, we stand ready to share our expertise on research in cancer prevention and survivorship.

“Overall, the Government’s announcement is a huge step in the right direction. We look forward to working with the Health Secretary and others to make the Plan a reality.”