| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
5 Mar 2004 : Column 1173W—continued
Cancer Treatment
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans he has to publish information on waiting times for treatment of cancers not covered by NHS Cancer Plan targets before 2005; [157771]
- (2) what progress has been made towards meeting the targets for cancer treatment in the NHS Cancer Plan. [157773]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The primary purpose of the NHS Cancer Plan is to save more lives. Reducing waiting times is key to achieving this. The ultimate goal in the NHS Cancer Plan is to offer patients a maximum one month wait from an urgent referral for suspected cancer to the beginning of treatment. Where patients wait longer, this should be because of the needs of the diagnostic process or their personal choice, not because of in-built delays in the system of care. We hope to achieve this goal by 2008.
Current waiting times targets are milestones towards this. Data on achievement of current targets from urgent general practitioner referral to treatment for acute leukaemia, children's and testicular cancers and breast cancer and from diagnosis to treatment for breast cancer, are published quarterly on the Department's website for strategic health authorities and trusts, at: http://www.performance.doh.gov.uk/cancerwaits. Data on achievement of future cancer plan waiting times targets
5 Mar 2004 : Column 1174W
of one month from diagnosis to treatment and two months from urgent general practitioner referral to treatment for all cancers will be published once these targets have been implemented in 2005.
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the incidence of melanoma by (a) age group and (b) strategic health authority. [157800]
Ruth Kelly: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from John Pullinger to Mrs. Calton, dated 5 March 2004:
- The latest year for which figures are available is 2000. The numbers and rates of newly diagnosed cases of melanoma of the skin by age group are published in 'Cancer statistics: registrations, England 2000. Series MB1 no.31. London: The Stationery Office, 2003' on the National Statistics website at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=8843&Pos=4&ColRank=l&Rank=240 This publication shows that 17 per cent. of melanoma cases occurred in young adults (15–39 years) compared with 4 per cent. of all cancers.
- Directly age standardised registration rates of newly diagnosed cases of-malignant melanoma of the skin 2 in England by strategic health authority for 2000 are given in the table.
(2) Using the European standard population
(3) International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) code C43.
Source:
Office for National Statistics
5 Mar 2004 : Column 1175W
Capital Projects
Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) for what reasons he imposed a retrospective cut-off date for approvals for local capital projects proposed by primary care trusts; [157962]
- (2) how many primary care trusts have informed his Department of the possible cancellation of local capital projects as a result of (a) the decision to change the method of funding allocations and (b) the imposition of a retrospective cut-off date. [157964]
Mr. Hutton: Significant new revenue funding will be made available to support public and private capital investment in the primary care estate, based on local prioritisation of development proposals. Baseline allocations for 2004–05 have been notified to all primary care trusts, and these take account of new developments contractually agreed by 30 September 2003. This date was set to allow sufficient time for robust baselines to be established and notified to PCTs. An additional element of growth funding to support prioritised developments contractually agreed after that date will be allocated to lead-PCTs.
We are not aware that any schemes have been cancelled at this time.
Chiropody Statistics
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out for (a) England and (b) each strategic health authority the KT23 statistics for each year since 1996. [144757]
Dr. Ladyman: The available information is published in NHS Chiropody Services, Summary Information for 2002–03, England and is available in the Library and at http://www.doh.gov.uk/public/kt230203. The tables show England figures for 1996–97 to 2002–03 and strategic health authority (SHA) figures for 2002–03; SHAs came into existence in April 2002 and comparable data for earlier years are not readily available due to service reconfigurations.
(4) The collection of data about total face-to-face contacts was discontinued from 1 April 2000
Source:
Form KT23
5 Mar 2004 : Column 1176W
| Strategic health authority | Initial contacts (new episodes of care) | First contacts (different persons receiving care) |
|---|---|---|
| County Durham and Tees Valley | 15.8 | 51.7 |
| Northumberland, Tyne and Wear | 22.7 | 79.7 |
| Cheshire and Merseyside | 51.6 | 117.9 |
| Cumbria and Lancashire | 35.7 | 110.5 |
| Greater Manchester | 59.1 | 172.8 |
| North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire | 23.4 | 83.1 |
| South Yorkshire | 24.6 | 77.2 |
| West Yorkshire | 33.8 | 126.9 |
| Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland | 33.8 | 53.1 |
| Trent | 43.9 | 112.8 |
| Birmingham and the Black Country | 62.2 | 125.3 |
| Coventry, Warwickshire, Hereford and Worcesters | 21.1 | 72.5 |
| Shropshire and Staffordshire | 22.7 | 82.4 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 15.3 | 49.1 |
| Essex | 14.4 | 42.3 |
| Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire | 27.4 | 81.4 |
| North Central London | 17.2 | 43.1 |
| North East London | 27.4 | 46.9 |
| North West London | 22.4 | 64.7 |
| South East London | 34.9 | 61.1 |
| South West London | 17.1 | 50.4 |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 22.1 | 48.4 |
| Kent and Medway | 23.3 | 58.7 |
| Surrey and Sussex | 30.8 | 84.0 |
| Thames Valley | 23.9 | 56.2 |
| Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire | 41.7 | 89.0 |
| Dorset and Somerset | 23.6 | 38.8 |
| South West Peninsula | 34.1 | 81.5 |
Source:
Form KT23
Cholesterol
Mr. Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the prevalence of raised blood cholesterol in (a) men and (b) women in each region; and if he will make a statement. [154583]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Figures available from the Health Survey for England 1998 are shown in the table. In this survey, cholesterol was considered to be raised at a level of 6.5 mmol/l or over.
Source:
Health Survey for England , Department of Health
5 Mar 2004 : Column 1177W
The quality indicators for the new general medical services contract include cholesterol management for patients with coronary heart disease. This will reinforce general practitioners' current work to deliver the quality standards set out in the national service framework for coronary heart disease, which are driving the present trend in increasing statin prescriptions.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |