CONCLUSIONS
158. Cancer is a range of complex diseases which
are currently treated with widely varying degrees of success.
Cancer kills one in four people in the UK. Four in ten UK citizens
will be diagnosed with cancer at some stage in their lives and
incidence is going up. A world-class research programme is essential
if we are to reduce the burden of this disease.
159. There is much cancer research in the UK that
is performed to the highest standards. The furtherance of this
research, and its exploitation to the benefit of patients, is
compromised by chronic under-funding. Government appears to have
abdicated responsibility for cancer research, possibly because
of the generosity of donors to many cancer research charities.
Cancer research is a major responsibility of Government and we
propose a greatly increased Government contribution to this field.
160. Only a tiny proportion of cancer patients in
the UK are entered into clinical trials for new cancer treatments.
We believe that entry into clinical trials should become a standard
part of treatment for many cancers where the patient is suitable
and there is a good possibility of patient benefit. The current
research infrastructure in the NHS is totally inadequate to achieve
this. Only two centres of cancer research excellence (the Royal
Marsden and the Hammersmith) have significant Government infrastructure
support for clinical research. We believe that the UK needs 12
centres of excellence and we have proposed increases in the Department
of Health's R&D spending to achieve this.
161. We also propose a National Cancer Act and the
creation of a statutory National Cancer Research Institute to
provide the vision, leadership, management and funding necessary
to increase the volume and quality of cancer research in the UK
and to co-ordinate Government efforts with those of voluntary
organisations and industry.
| 
