Blood Cancer: Diagnosis
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NHS England on the collection of patient data which indicates the level of disease progression of blood cancers at the point of diagnosis.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
Unfortunately, not all blood cancers can be staged. Most types of leukaemia are not staged in the same way as cancers that form tumours, because they have typically spread through the body via the blood by the time they are found.
However, all cases of cancer diagnosed and treated in the National Health Service in England are registered by the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS). Blood cancer is included as a distinct category, labelled haematological neoplasms. This creates a clinically rich data resource that is used to measure diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes for patients diagnosed with cancer. The data held by the NCRAS supports service provision and commissioning in the NHS, clinical audits, and public health and epidemiology.
The Department and NHS England continue to discuss data insights across a range of areas. This includes patient data collection for all cancers, including blood cancer.
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