JUSTIN TOMLINSON: Swindon MPs back Cross Out Cancer campaign

Last week in Parliament (11 February), Robert Buckland, MP for South Swindon, and I joined Cancer Research UK to mark World Cancer Day.

It is now acknowledged that one in two people will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives. That’s why Robert and I are backing the ‘Cross Out Cancer’ campaign to try and save the lives of more cancer patients across the UK.

The aim of the campaign is to highlight the urgent need to bolster public health and NHS cancer services so that they can cope with a growing and ageing population, as well as the looming demands for better diagnostics and the most advanced treatments.

The Government has already introduced the new £280 billion Cancer Drugs Fund which is helping to fund research and give patients access to the most advanced treatments. The fund is already saving lives, but there is still more to do. In the South West alone, there are three people being diagnosed with cancer every hour. It is therefore vital that we detect cancer earlier across the UK and ensure that the NHS is fit to offer all patients the best possible chance of surviving.

In the first instance it is important for every elected representative across the Country to throw their support behind the campaigns launched by Cancer Research UK. I have been proud to support a number of them in Parliament, including the ‘Men United’ campaign which aims to increase the awareness of Prostate Cancer and help to make sure men spot for the early stages of the disease.

For a number of years I have also participated in the ‘Wear it Pink’ campaign where the idea has been to ‘look good, do good’ by lending support in the fight against Breast Cancer, which tragically kills 12,000 women and 80 men each year.

Towards the end of last year, my wife Jo and I also joined local residents from Swindon and staff from local business Excalibur, in a world record attempt to raise funds for a dedicated teenage cancer unit in the South West. Unfortunately, the record wasn’t broken but residents did manage to raise £50,000 towards the new unit.

Along with this new specialist unit which will be based in Bath, I am delighted that we are continuing to build on our excellent regional care provided at the John Radcliffe Hospital and the Great Western Hospital, the latter of which is set to receive a new £16 million radiotherapy centre to treat local patients.

As the local MP, I will continue to ensure that fighting cancer remains at the top of the health agenda. The disease has at some stage affected everybody’s life, whether personally or through a family or friend. That’s why it is critically important that we continue to increase awareness, so that people can spot the early signs of cancer and seek treatment quickly.

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