Year 1 of Scotland's Cancer Action Plan

Just over a year ago, the Scottish government published Scotland’s Cancer Action Plan 2023-2026. Recently, the Scottish government produced a progress report to highlight what they have achieved in its first year.

In this post, we explore how we’ve helped to progress the actions in the plan and our concerns around the commitment to collect secondary breast cancer data.

We’ve been working to ensure that the Scottish government delivers on the key actions to improve the diagnosis and treatment of both primary and secondary breast cancer by 2026.

In the last year, we’ve met with key stakeholders, including the Cabinet Secretary of NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care, and the Minister of Public Health and Women’s Health. We’ve also engaged with the Scottish government’s Cancer Policy and Medicine Policy teams, and as active members of the Scottish Cancer Coalition, we’ve highlighted the key priorities for primary and secondary breast cancer.

Over 1 year on from the plan’s publication, we’ve been involved in some key projects which are crucial in delivering some of the actions, including:

• Influencing and providing feedback on the Scottish Cancer Network’s Clinical Management Pathway. The pathway now provides primary and secondary healthcare professionals with guidance on breast cancer patients’ journey from diagnosis and treatment, through to follow up and end of life care
  
  
• Participating in the clinically led review of the Scottish Referral guidelines for suspected cancer. We’ve helped to update a draft of the breast cancer guideline, which will help GPs in Scotland to recognise the signs and symptoms of breast cancer and place breast cancer patients on the correct pathway for diagnosis and treatment

• Influencing the launch of Gateway C, a cancer education platform and their breast recurrence course in Scotland, which educates primary care healthcare professionals on cancer detection
• Working to modernise and improve access to breast screening as active members of the Breast Screening Modernisation Programme Board

We’ve been committed to improving secondary breast cancer data collection across the UK to enhance the quality and consistency of services provided to secondary breast cancer patients.

With the publication of the Cancer Action Plan 2023-2026, the Scottish government committed to collecting national data on metastatic cancers, starting with secondary breast cancer. Since then, we’ve regularly met with colleagues in the Scottish government and shared recommendations to improve the collection of secondary breast cancer data by 2026. This includes:

• Assessing what data is currently collected by Public Health Scotland as well as locally, at hospital and health board level
• Mapping existing gaps in the data
• Engaging with stakeholders in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to learn about their current work and plans to improve data collection on secondary breast cancer
• Working with partners to agree what secondary breast cancer data to collect
• Publishing and analysing data annually to identify areas of improvement nationally and at Health Board level

The Scottish government and Public Health Scotland have since met with colleagues from NHS England to discuss their current work on the National Audit of Metastatic Breast Cancer in England and Wales. They have also produced a cancer data roadmap to highlight the recent work of Public Health Scotland to achieve the data commitments in the Cancer Action Plan.

While these are positive steps, we still don’t know what data  will be collected and reported on for secondary breast cancer patients.

We’re also concerned that progress on collecting secondary breast cancer data is being slowed down because as a member of the European Network of Cancer Registries, Public Health Scotland is waiting for guidance on collecting recurrence data to be published before they consider the feasibility of implementing recommendation by 2026.

Scotland now risks falling behind the rest of the UK. The lack of accurate, timely and consistent data limits NHS Scotland’s ability to provide meaningful secondary breast cancer services. This has knock on effects on the experience of secondary breast cancer patients.

Over the next few months, we’ll be working to make sure that the commitment to collect secondary breast cancer data is on track to be delivered by 2026. We’ll be looking to collaborate with the Scottish government and other key stakeholders including Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) to ensure we collect the right data, at the right time.

This includes our wear it pink drop in event at the Scottish Parliament, which provided MSPs an opportunity to learn more about breast cancer in Scotland, the work of Breast Cancer Now – and the importance of delivering this commitment for secondary breast cancer patients.

We’re calling on you to help us achieve this. Keep an eye out for future opportunities to get involved by signing up to our Voices Network and joining our Changemakers Facebook page.