How we are delivering on National Cancer Plan ambitions across SWAG
We are pleased to see the publication of the National Cancer Plan by the Department of Health and Social Care on this World Cancer Day 2026. Here at SWAG Cancer Alliance, we support the commitments to ensuring more people survive cancer, are diagnosed earlier and faster, and receive more personalised support.
Each year, there are around 50,000 cancer diagnoses in the South West. The plan sets out a long-term ambition that from 2035 onwards, three in four people diagnosed with cancer will be cancer-free or living well five years after diagnosis. The plan itself is structured around 6 key themes:
- Driving up NHS cancer performance
- Becoming a global leader in cancer outcomes by 2035
- Designing cancer care around people’s lives
- Delivering world class cancer care through world class research
- Tackling cancer in children and young people
- Prioritising rare and less common cancers
It also outlines some key national reforms that will directly support improvements in cancer care, including expanding robot-assisted surgery, a £2.3 billion investment in faster diagnosis, which will provide 9.5 million additional tests by 2029, specialist cancer centres for patients with rarer cancers, genomic testing for all patients to understand and tailor most effective treatments, and reduction in cancer waiting times.
SWAG-wide work aligned to the National Cancer Plan
Across Somerset, Wiltshire, Avon and Gloucestershire (SWAG) we have already been delivering some innovative and transformative work in these areas. For example, the Digital Breast Self-Referral Service in Somerset, which we were thrilled to see featured as a positive case study in the national plan. Somerset NHS Foundation Trust has introduced England’s first digital self‑referral pathway for breast cancer symptoms, enabling patients to refer themselves directly to diagnostic clinics via NHS 111 online or the NHS App. So far, this has enabled over 850 self-referrals and 48 cancer diagnoses, as well as freeing up GP capacity.
Since 2022, our Lung Screening Programme has been one of the strongest performing nationally, with over 145,000 invitations sent to eligible people to attend their free lung health check, 92,000 of which have been taken up, diagnosing over 400 lung cancers. Over two thirds of which were at Stages 1 or 2 – when they are easier to treat.
Our teledermatology service that has now been rolled out across the whole SWAG footprint has significantly reduced waits and unnecessary appointments within the skin cancer referral pathway. Images taken with specialised cameras can now be reviewed by dermatology consultants remotely, with patients either directly referred to a hospital appointment, or discharged.
Primary care teams across SWAG have also been piloting the capsule sponge test – a simple, non-invasive test that helps detect Barrett’s Oesophagus, a precursor to oesophageal cancer, one of the rarer cancers. Find out more on this here: Innovating Early Diagnosis: EndoSign® Capsule Sponge Testing for Barrett’s Oesophagus in Primary Care
SWAG Clinical Director, Helen Winter, said:
“The national cancer plan is an opportunity for us all to refocus and recommit to the already brilliant work happening across SWAG’s footprint. It also challenges us to be bold—especially in tackling the persistent health inequalities that shape people’s experiences and outcomes across our region.
The national plan also set out the significant challenges facing cancer services nationally, pressures that we know our colleagues experience every day. These challenges underline the need for system-wide change in how we deliver cancer care across our footprint.
At SWAG Cancer Alliance, we recognise the hard work of all our colleagues, who everyday work tirelessly to deliver the highest quality cancer care they can and we look forward to the opportunities that the National Cancer Plan brings to build on this work – something that we know will be met with passion and dedication from our workforce.
