Petition for cancer treatment to be funded reaches 46,000 signatories
The cancer charity Planets is leading the campaign for the treatment, known as selective internal radiation therapy (Sirt), to be made available through the NHS after it was approved for use more than a year ago.
A spokesman for the charity said: 'Every year approximately 6,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with NETs, a complex and often slow-growing cancer that can be difficult to detect and treat.
'Many patients develop tumours in the liver where the treatment could offer significant benefits.
'Sirt involves injecting millions of tiny radioactive beads called microspheres – smaller than the width of a human hair – into the blood supply in the liver to destroy cancer cells.'
The spokesman said that despite approval by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in May 2024, NHS England had yet to commission it meaning that patients had no timetable for when it might become available.
He added that Sirt was already available on the NHS for patients whose liver cancer developed in the organ directly or which had spread to it from the bowel but NET patients remained excluded.
Layla Stephen, a NET patient from Hampshire and director of strategy and finance for Planets, said: 'Patients are missing out simply because of red tape.
'Without NHS commissioning, only those that can afford to go private have access to Sirt and that is simply not right or fair – we need to change this.'
Ms Stephen added: 'In a statement earlier this year, NHS England said it was developing a national policy on Sirt to ensure all patients across England have the best possible treatment, yet there is still no confirmed timeline despite approval in May last year, leaving patients in limbo and suffering agonising uncertainty.'
Caroline Nokes, Conservative MP for Romsey and Southampton North, has written to health and social care secretary Wes Streeting about the issue.
She said: 'Constituents of mine with neuroendocrine tumours should not be caught in a bureaucratic limbo when effective treatment is both available and approved. There needs to be fairness and transparency for these patients.'
An NHS spokeswoman said previously: 'The NHS understands the concerns raised about access to selective internal radiation therapy (Sirt) for neuroendocrine tumours in the liver.
'The health service is currently reviewing a clinical proposal and developing a new national mandated NHS policy on Sirt to ensure all patients across England have the best possible treatment for their liver metastases.'
The petition can be found at: change.org/p/ensure-access-for-cancer-patients-to-life-changing-treatment-approved-by-nice.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Coroner calls for urgent action over NHS blindspot after woman, 27, dies
A coroner has called for urgent action to address an NHS blindspot in Greater Manchester's crisis support after the tragic death of a young woman aged just 27. Jessica Smithson sadly took her own life on August 28 2024. An inquest into her death on August 7 heard that Jessica's mental state had 'acutely deteriorated' following an alleged sexual assault that she reported to police just two days before her death. Already under a treatment plan for Emotional Unstable Personality Disorder, Jessica had been in contact with a mental health support service, Shout, run by a charity, on the evening of August 28, shortly before she tragically took her own life. READ MORE: Pensioner died after hospital missed bleed on the brain, then made it worse READ MORE: Met Office warns Hurricane Erin set to bring 'big change' to UK weather over last few weeks of summer The inquest, held at Rochdale Coroners Court, heard that Shout has the option to refer certain high-risk cases to the Metropolitan Police, who can use the texter's mobile phone number to try and locate them so that local police services can intervene - but Jessica's case was not escalated. At the inquest, Senior Coroner Joanne Kersley returned a verdict of suicide, adding that Jessica's case should have been passed to the Met Police, but that even if it had, her life sadly could not have been saved. Now Ms Kearsley has said that more people like Jessica could be at risk of dying unless action is taken to provide a 24/7 text-based crisis service, a role currently performed by charities. She has written to the Department of Health and NHS England, making reference to the National Suicide Prevention Strategy, which in 2023 'highlighted the critical role of 24/7 crisis text services'. "The roll-out of these services across the country was a key action and commitment in the strategy, funded by an allocation of £7 million to integrated care boards. "NHS England indicated that they would oversee the roll-out of these, which was expected to be rolled out by March 2025. This has now been extended to March 2026. "Only 10 have set up such a service with another 11 in the process of doing so. Some have indicated that they have no plans to do so." "At present this gap is being filled by charity organisations. They are not under the Department of Health so there is no standard policy or procedure for them to follow. Hence there is a lack of consistency as to the support an individual can receive. She continued: "As they are not linked into local NHS trusts, they have limited ability to understand local pathways or offer a more coordinated response where someone is already under local services." Addressing the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board, she stated that there is no commissioned text support service in Greater Manchester. "While residents can message national services, the location of an individual texter will often not be known," Ms Kearsley wrote. "Greater Manchester Police receive a significant number of referrals sent by Shout to the Met Police from this service - almost one a day where there is an immediate risk to life. "If there was a GM commissioned service, it is likely that any search for the individual would be done by GMP and would shorten the timeframe in which they could respond to the risk. "A GM commissioned service would have a greater understanding of local pathways in order to refer people before they reach a point of crisis." Concluding the report, Ms Kearsley asked for a response from both parties by October 6, writing: "In my opinion, action should be taken to prevent future deaths and I believe each of you have the power to take such action." In response, the Greater Manchester Integrated Care Board said they were 'committed' to launching a crisis text support service by March 2026 which would be 'integrated into a wider support system'. A spokesperson for NHS Greater Manchester said: 'Our thoughts are with Jessica's family, friends and all who loved her. "We are committed to preventing suicides and are progressing plans to launch a crisis text service as part of that work. We will ensure our response to the coroner addresses the concerns raised in full.' When approached for comment, a Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: 'Our deepest sympathies are with Jessica's family and friends in this tragic case. 'We respond to, and learn from, all Prevention of Future Death reports and will consider the report fully before responding. 'It is essential that anyone experiencing a mental health crisis can access timely support when they need it and NHS England has confirmed plans to have 24 hour a day, seven day a week mental health crisis text services in place nationally by spring 2026.'
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
New NHS bladder cancer treatment doubles survival time
The NHS will roll out a new treatment for advanced bladder cancer which doubles survival time. It's estimated that 1,250 people a year could benefit from a combination of drugs called enfortumab vedotin and pembrolizumab. The first is an antibody-drug also known as Padcev, made by Astellas and Pfizer, while the latter is a PD-L1 inhibitor, also known as Keytruda, which is made by Merck. Clinical trials suggest the combo leads to improved survival compared to platinum-based chemotherapy - increasing from an average of around 16 months to almost 34. Researchers also found people survive for longer without their disease worsening, also known as progression-free survival - going up from six months to more than a year. It will mark the first significant change to treatment of advanced bladder cancer since the 1980s, according to expert Professor Thomas Powels, director of Barts Cancer Institute Biomedical Research Centre (QMUL). Around 18,000 people in England are diagnosed with bladder cancer each year. Read more from Sky News: The new treatment was approved for NHS use by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, which said it was "highly promising" and could make a "tremendous difference" to people. One patient who took part in the trial said it had given him more time with his grandson. Martyn Hewett, 75, from Stratford, east London, said: "I feel very, very lucky, because if I hadn't been on this trial, I imagine I would be dead by now. "I am going to have an extra few years to see my grandson grow up - and maybe even be around to see him get married."
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
First new treatment for advanced bladder cancer in decades given green light
A new treatment for advanced bladder cancer which doubles survival time has been given the green light for NHS use. Experts said the approval of the new treatment combination would bring a 'fundamental shift' in care for patients with late-stage disease, saying that until now, the treatment for advanced bladder cancer had not significantly changed since the 1980s. They said there had been real 'unmet need' for patients with advanced disease, with some 29% of people diagnosed with stage 4 cancer – when the cancer has spread to other parts of the body – surviving for a year after diagnosis. It is estimated that 1,250 people a year could benefit from the treatment. The new treatment combination includes enfortumab vedotin, an antibody-drug which is also known as Padcev, made by Astellas and Pfizer – with pembrolizumab, a drug known as a PD-L1 inhibitor, also known as Keytruda, which is made by Merck. Clinical trials suggest that the treatment combination, when tested against platinum-based chemotherapy, led to improved survival for patients. 'Prior to the EV-302 clinical trial, the treatment of advanced bladder cancer treatment hadn't significantly changed since the 1980s,' Professor Thomas Powles, director of Barts Cancer Institute Biomedical Research Centre (QMUL), UK and primary investigator on the trial, said. 'This guidance will fundamentally reshape first-line treatment for eligible patients.' Trial data indicated that patients who took the treatment combination survived for an average of 33.8 months compared to 15.9 months with chemotherapy. Researchers also measured the amount of time people survived without their disease worsening – also known as progression-free survival – and found that people on the combination treatment had just more than a year of progression-free survival compared to half-a-year for those on standard treatment. Three in 10 (30%) patients had a so-called 'complete response' when getting the combination treatment – meaning there was no evidence of cancer remaining. This was compared to 14.5% of those who received chemotherapy. One patient said that taking part in the trial had given him more time with his grandson. Martyn Hewett, 75, from Stratford, east London, received the combination treatment on a trial at Barts Health NHS Trust after surgery to remove his tumours failed. He said: 'I feel very, very lucky, because if I hadn't been on this trial, I imagine I would be dead by now. 'Immediately after the operation that failed, I asked the doctor what the prognosis was, and he said, most people in your position live for a year, and now, three-and-a-half years later here I am. 'I am going to have an extra few years to see my grandson grow up – and maybe even be around to see him get married.' The treatment combination will now be available for NHS patients in England following the approval from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) for patients with 'unresectable or metastatic urothelial cancer for people who are eligible for platinum-containing chemotherapy' and is given as an IV infusion in hospitals or clinics. Dr Timir Patel, medical director of Astellas UK, said: 'The guidance from Nice is excellent news for patients. 'Advanced bladder cancer is in an area where there is a real unmet need. 'This combination therapy changes the standard of care for doctors and their patients.' Helen Knight, director of medicines evaluation at Nice, said: 'This is a highly promising and effective new drug, with clinical trial results highlighting the tremendous difference it could make to the length and quality of people's lives. 'Advanced bladder cancer is a devastating condition which can have a substantial impact on people's daily lives, often leading to them struggling to work, travel or maintain physical activity.' Professor Peter Johnson, NHS England's national clinical director for cancer, said: 'This is one of the most hopeful advances in decades for people with bladder cancer who will now be offered a treatment that can almost double their chances of survival, helping thousands to live longer and giving them more precious moments with their loved ones. 'Bladder cancer is often difficult to treat once it has spread, but this new therapy is the first one in years to really help stop the disease in its tracks, and our rollout to NHS patients will make a huge difference to the lives of those affected and their families.' Jeannie Rigby, chief executive of charity Action Bladder Cancer UK, said: 'This new drug has the potential to increase how long people have before their cancer gets worse and how long they live compared with the current, limited, treatment choices available.' Around 18,000 people in England are diagnosed with bladder cancer each year.
