Leeds Teaching Hospitals among 78 trusts to receive funding for new screening machines
30 October 2019
Health Secretary announces new funding to improve cancer diagnosis.
Leeds is one of 78 NHS trusts to benefit from a multi-million pound funding injection to upgrade cancer testing and detection technology announced by the Government today.
It follows the Prime Minister’s pledge of an extra £200million in funding last month for new, state of the art cancer screening equipment. The new machines will improve screening and early diagnosis of cancer and are part of the Government’s commitment to ensure 55,000 more people across the country survive cancer each year.
The funding will be available over the next two years to replace, refurbish and upgrade CT and MRI scanners, bringing in alternatives with lower radiation levels, and breast screening imaging and assessment equipment.
The Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust will use the funding to support the replacement of our scanners over the age of 10 years which include one CT machine this year and three MRI scanners. This will improve patient experience leading to earlier diagnosis and potentially saving more lives. The new machines are more efficient, easier to use, scan and construct images quicker, and reduce the need to re-scan.
Yvette Oade, Deputy Chief Executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust, said they were delighted to receive the new funding. “It will allow us to upgrade our equipment and improve the already excellent care we provide for our patients. We already have a schedule for replacing our machines and the funding will help us to progress our plans and benefit patients much faster.”
Each trust has been allocated funding for new machines based on an assessment of local infrastructure and local population need. They will all contribute to the NHS Long Term Plan’s goal of catching three quarters of all cancers earlier when they are easier to treat.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Matt Hancock, said: “This new state-of-the-art equipment for 78 trusts across England will ensure doctors and clinicians can help even more people survive a cancer diagnosis and stop the disease as early as possible.
“It’s mission critical that the technology our NHS uses to prevent and diagnose cancer is brought into the twenty first century. We have backed the roll out of these new machines with £200 million in funding, as part of our Long-Term Plan, backed by an extra £33.9 billion a year.”
Cally Palmer, National Cancer Director at NHS England, said: “Cancer survival is at a record high thanks to better prevention, earlier diagnosis and world leading treatments in the NHS.
“This major investment in the best modern scanning technology will benefit patients in every part of England, helping us to achieve the NHS Long-Term Plan’s ambitions of catching tens of thousands more cancers earlier when they are easier to treat, saving 55,000 more lives every year.”
Each trust has been allocated funding for new machines based on an assessment of local infrastructure and local population need. They will all contribute to the NHS Long Term Plan’s goal of catching three quarters of all cancers earlier when they are easier to treat.
