Abstract

It is estimated that one in two people will develop cancer at some point in their lives. There are around 375,000 new cancer cases in the UK every year. Despite advances in treatment, cancer remains one of the top five causes of early death in England.

The NHS Long Term Plan was published in January 2019. It sets out stretching ambitions and commitments to improve cancer outcomes and services in England over the coming years. Its key ambitions are to significantly increase both the proportion of people diagnosed with cancer at an early stage and five-year survival following cancer.

The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre (CCC) is one of three specialist cancer centres in the UK. It operates a networked model of care, with services for non-surgical oncology spread across the region of Cheshire and Merseyside, serving a population of 2.4 million. The CCC’s model is based on the principle of providing care locally where possible and centrally where necessary, and it was one of the first cancer centres in the UK to deliver cancer treatments to patients in their own homes.