Key Summary
- There is a significant gap in early diagnosis between the most affluent and the poorest areas of the country
- The government's recent initiatives have improved the early diagnosis rate over a decade.
- This includes supporting primary care to spot early signs, and the rollout of lung cancer screening.
The government has come up with a new £200 million fund to tackle healthcare inequalities in cancer care by stepping up screenings in deprived areas.
The investment will help local communities across England to carry out cancer screenings and help in early diagnosis.
Though more people in England survive cancer than ever before, the progress has slowed.
As for early diagnosis, there is a significant gap between the most affluent and the poorest areas of the country.
However, the government's recent initiatives have ensured some progress in early diagnosis over the past decade.
They include streamlining referral routes, supporting primary care to spot early signs, and the rollout of lung cancer screening.
Early diagnosis rates in 2024 and 2025 have been at their highest-ever level, with around 10,000 people diagnosed last year.
From 2026, Cancer Alliances - regional NHS partnerships that coordinate cancer services - and neighbourhood health services will work directly with local communities to reduce the gap in screening uptake between the most and least deprived areas.
The three-year Neighbourhood Early Diagnosis Fund, totalling £200 million in 2026 to 2027, will enable Cancer Alliances to support their local NHS to reduce inequalities in communities and among groups where rates of early diagnosis are lower.
These alliances will work with community groups and charities to identify barriers and design effective local campaigns to reduce the gap in cancer screenings.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said, "In 1948, Aneurin Bevan founded the NHS with a promise that the best possible care would be available to all, regardless of their ability to pay or where they live.
"The postcode lottery for cancer care we see today shows that promise has still not been realised. Our cancer plan will put this right, through investment and modernisation.
"I know from my own experience of being diagnosed with kidney cancer how vital early detection is. It was only caught by chance because I went to the hospital about something else entirely. I was one of the lucky ones - but healthcare shouldn’t be left to luck."
NHS England national medical director Dr Claire Fuller said, "Through the National Cancer Plan we will work closer with local communities to ensure that barriers to early diagnosis and screening opportunities are eradicated and help to make England a world leader for cancer survival."
