NHS England and NHS Improvement is delighted to announce a £15 million funding competition for innovation to go to the open market in the field of cancer. This competition invites applications for funding to implement solutions in late-stage development into front-line settings to improve early detection and diagnosis of cancer.
Registration opens at 28/02/2022 and closes at 24/05/2022. The awarded project will be 100% funded up to the value of £4M (net) for a maximum of 18 months in the first instance.
The NHS Long Term Plan (LTP) sets out stretching ambitions and commitments to improve cancer care outcomes and services in England. The key ambitions are:
- by 2028, 55 thousand more people each year will survive their cancer for five years or more; and
- by 2028, 75% of people with cancer will be diagnosed at an early stage (stages one or two).
Diagnosing cancer early increases chances of survival as it means patients can receive treatment when there is a better chance of achieving a complete cure.
In 2019, just over 50% (54.5%) of staged cancers were diagnosed at stage one or two. Some tumour types are particularly challenged, for example, pancreatic, head and neck, oesophageal, stomach, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and ovarian cancers. (Click here to see supporting documentation and figures.)
The NHS Cancer Programme at NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSEI) are looking for innovations or new approaches that will increase the proportion of cancers that are diagnosed at stage one or two. This includes innovations in the broadest possible sense, including behavioural interventions, software, or new models of care.
