The £70million announced last October for new radiotherapy machines was great news for UK cancer patients and our #CatchUpWithCancer campaign.
Radiotherapy UK would now like to thank Tessa Munt MP for following up with two key questions for the Secretary of State.
- The Wells and Mendip MP asked for an update on how many new radiotherapy machines were applied for. We now know there were applications to replace 40 machines, with some hospital trusts applying to replace two. This became 30 applications when North Middlesex University Hospital Trust joined the Royal Free London Group. Two trusts withdrew applications after getting funding for replacement machines from NHS capital underspend.
- Tessa Munt also asked the Secretary of State how much funding was allocated to the emergency radiotherapy capital equipment fund in 2024-25; and which hospital trusts were awarded that funding. A total of £15 million was given to replace ageing radiotherapy equipment from an underspend in the NHS’s capital settlement for 2024-25.
In a nutshell, around 34 machines will be replaced using these two funding streams, which is just over half of the 64 that the Royal College of Radiologists estimates will be past their recommended lifespan by the end of this year.
This is huge progress, but in our view, still leaves an uncertain future for replacing the other half. Our campaign calls for a sustainable, rolling funding programme for machines.
This would allow departments to deliver necessary replacements in a strategic, planned way. A transformative move for UK cancer patients: encouraging faster treatments, less delays caused by broken machines and improved access to modern radiotherapy.
Video: Tessa Munt MP speaking on the benefits of radiotherapy
Learn more about our campaign’s World cancer Day message (HERE).
