The UK government’s cancer plan – what does it mean for breast cancer?

Alongside other cancer charities as part of the One Cancer Voice Coalition, we’ve been calling for a plan for many years. And over the last 12 months, we’ve been working alongside our incredible supporters to make sure it delivers for people affected by breast cancer.

In this blog we’ll look at the headline ambitions the government have set and what that means specifically for breast cancer.

We welcome the government’s headline ambitions that they have laid out in the plan. We’re particularly pleased to see it aligns with the change we want to see, as set out in our new strategy: Change Happens Now. This includes:

• Everyone with breast cancer should live and live well – the government’s plan sets out the ambition that, from 2035, 75% of people diagnosed with cancer will be cancer free or living well
• Quicker, earlier diagnosis to save and improve lives – the government has committed to meeting cancer waiting time targets by 2029
• Everyone getting the best care and support – Diagnosis Connect is a new partnership between government and charities, with the aim of referring patients directly to charities, like Breast Cancer Now, for support, advice and guidance

We’re delighted that following years of campaigning with our supporters, the patient group METUPUK and many others, the government has committed to “define and count recurrent breast cancers – starting with metastatic (secondary) breast cancer in 2026”

The current lack of data makes it difficult to understand the exact number of people living with secondary breast cancer. As a result, it’s incredibly hard to plan for and implement the services that will meet their needs - so this commitment is really welcome news!

Some women are at increased risk of breast cancer due to carrying an altered gene or because they have a significant family history.

We called for improvements in the consistency of treatment and support for these women at increased risk. And for urgent steps to be taken to improve data collection. 

So, we’re pleased to see that the government has committed to creating a new world-leading national database (National Inherited Cancer Predisposition Registry) for people at an increased risk of cancer.

This aims to deliver proactive, targeted prevention, surveillance and earlier diagnosis for people and their families.

We hope it will help to lead to better access to frequent screening and to risk-reducing treatments for those at increased risk of breast cancer.

It’s a great start but we need to make sure that that the register is available to all women at increased risk and that it is accessible to all clinicians.

Screening finds most breast cancers early, when survival is almost 100%. More women screened means more lives saved.

That’s why we’ve been calling for action to address the most common barriers preventing people from getting screened and to tackle unequal uptake of screening. And it’s why we want to see screening services becoming more flexible, convenient, and adaptable.

It’s great to see the plan commit to address variations in screening uptake, with targeted, local campaigns to get more women from ethnic minority and underserved communities screened.

There’s also a welcome commitment to work with manufacturers to promote the development of mammography machines that are accessible to people with physical disabilities, which is something else we’ve been calling for. 

And the plan also includes other positive actions, like committing to everyone being able to book and manage their screening appointment through the NHS App by 2028.

We want to see new and better treatments that pave the way for cures. So, we welcome the plan’s ambition for the NHS to be the first choice for clinical trials, improve how innovation is spread and for more people to access potentially life-saving treatments.

There’s a commitment that everyone who could benefit from genomic testing should be able to access it in a timely way, so they can receive targeted treatments – something we've called for.

But we’d like to have seen more from the government on how they plan to ensure people can access and benefit from innovative new treatments, including life-extending drugs. 

We know there are women right now who are unable to access drugs that could give them more time to live. Drugs like Enhertu for HER2-low secondary breast cancer – available in Scotland and many other countries, but not in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland.

Yes! There’s some other really encouraging commitments in the plan that could benefit breast cancer patients:

• Personalised assessments and cancer plans at the point of diagnosis – covering treatment, wider physical and mental health needs, and social needs 
• End of treatment summaries – offering people a route back into hospital if they need it  which are co-produced with patients and their clinical team 
• Support for health care professionals to spot signs that could be cancer
• New cancer manuals – digital tools for both clinicians and patients, which will identify best practice and give a consistent framework to assess the quality of services

While the plan contains lots of really welcome commitments, this is just the first step.
 
The plan will only make a difference if its ambitions are met and its promises delivered.

To help this happen we called for there to be clear accountability for delivering the plan. We’re pleased to see there will be a reformed National Cancer Board which will be accountable for delivery of the plan and clear oversight from the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. There will also be an annual summary of progress, and a more in-depth report after 3 years.

We’re now ready to work in close partnership with the government and the NHS to help turn these ambitions into real and lasting change for everyone affected by breast cancer.
  
But we’re also here to make sure they deliver the plan and to speak up and put the pressure on when they’re not going far enough or fast enough.
 
And key to making this plan a success will be ensuring the NHS has enough money, resources, and the right workforce in place to deliver it. We’ll be keeping a close watch to make sure they do. 

You can read our Chief Executive’s response to the plan here.

And you can view the National Cancer Plan for England in full here.