Oral Answers to Questions — Health – in the House of Commons at 2:30 pm on 23 June 2009.
What steps he plans to take to encourage men to seek medical assistance in the early stages of cancer.
If I may be permitted, I should like to congratulate you on your first Question Time, Mr. Speaker.
The theme of last week's men's health week, which we supported, was men's access to health care services. We are working to improve awareness of the signs and symptoms of cancer among men and women in England and to encourage those with symptoms to seek help earlier than they currently do so.
As the first Back Bencher to speak today, may I welcome you to the Chair, Mr. Speaker? I wish you all the good luck and good will that you deserve. I hope that you will receive a lot more luck and good will than some of your predecessors have received.
I thank my hon. Friend for her answer. Will she provide some detail and explain what she proposes to do to fill in the gaps that mean that men seem not to go to the doctor or take advice? How can we try to get them to the doctor to ensure that treatable cancer is treated very quickly? Hopefully we will not then have the deaths that we have at the moment.
From evidence, the reasons why men are more likely to develop and, sadly, die from cancer are complex. We do know that the earlier a cancer is diagnosed, the higher the chance that it will be treated successfully. Men are notoriously bad at taking care of themselves and tend to put off seeing their GP, which risks later diagnosis and treatment. To mark men's health week, and with the help of the Football Foundation, of which men constantly take notice, NHS Choices has highlighted five important male health issues: testicular cancer, skin cancer, mental well-being, prostate cancer and sexual dysfunction.
I was touched to receive the kind remarks of John Robertson and of the Minister. Perhaps I could just say—I hope that it is not presumptuous—that if any other Member was thinking of following suit, I ask him or her not to do so. We do want to make progress through the Order Paper.
Will the Minister indicate why the national health service is not always prepared to give people suffering from the early stages of cancer the most modern, up-to-date medication, even if it is the most costly? Why will it not prescribe the best drug to limit the advance of cancer?
Our advancement in the treatment of cancer is well recognised in our cancer plan, but we still have to educate men and women in this country so that they go to their doctor earlier and diagnosis can be made much quicker and more effectively. That is what we are doing through many different initiatives.
Does the Minister agree that although it is important that men go for early advice, it is also important that they get an early correct diagnosis? I am dealing with the case of a constituent who unfortunately died after being tret for 10 months in our local South Tyneside hospital for a urine infection. He was transferred to Sunderland, where he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, and he died—a tragic case. Will the Minister agree to meet me so that we can discuss the issue further, to find out how we got to this position?
Yes. I am sorry about that particular tragedy of my hon. Friend's constituent. The issue is so important, and I will be very happy to meet him.
Testicular, prostate and skin cancers all have a good outcome, provided that they are diagnosed early. The hon. Lady is quite right that people must see their doctors quickly and that men do not look after themselves, but what steps can she take over a sustained period, not just a week, to ensure that there is a change of attitude and that men go to the doctor early for diagnosis?
This is about education and schools getting through to young people about self-examination, which can still be done for some of the problems that affect men. Through the screening programme in the national awareness and early diagnosis initiative, we are bringing screening closer to those concerned in many imaginative ways. I am sure that if the hon. Gentleman looked on the NHS Choices website, he would see that.
Is my hon. Friend aware that my constituency has one of the highest death rates from prostate cancer in the country? Would she support primary care trusts in areas such as mine in understanding why the death rate is so high and, in particular, whether there is a high incidence or whether the problem is access to services and education?
I was unaware of the problem in my hon. Friend's constituency, although I would be happy to look at it with her. The Government are committed to introducing screening for prostate cancer; indeed, a ministerial statement on prostate cancer screening was made on
May I press the Minister further on prostate cancer? It is the second most prevalent cancer in men in the country, with 35,000 new cases diagnosed every year, yet there are still wide inequalities in care and outcomes. Could the Minister say a little more about what specific actions and improvements she is planning in order to provide greater information about prostate care, to widen access to treatments such as hormone therapy and brachytherapy, to encourage greater provision of clinical nurse specialists and to ensure the full implementation of national guidelines?
I am pleased that the House is giving this subject the importance that it deserves. The UK National Screening Committee is meeting today to discuss the new evidence and decide whether there is now enough information to make a decision on screening for prostate cancer. Should it decide that there is still insufficient information, it could commission further analysis. If that is the case, the committee will set a clear reporting timetable.
The Minister is quite right in the way that she is addressing the issue. Testicular and prostate cancer are the silent killers, especially prostate cancer. The problem is that men seem to be too embarrassed to go to the doctor's, but what about doctors calling men in earlier and regularly doing a full screening, rather than waiting for symptoms to appear? The problem is that most people do not even know that they have the symptoms. A regular call-in would be a way round that.
I agree with my hon. Friend. Extending screening in different ways is important, which is why earlier I mentioned the good work that the Football Foundation does with us, because it helps in raising awareness where there tends to be more of a gathering of men.