Sir Gavin Williamson joined Pancreatic Cancer UK’s campaign to call for improved clinical trial access.
Sir Gavin is backing Pancreatic Cancer UK’s campaign calling for improved access to clinical trials.
The campaign, Demand Survival Now, are highlighting the lack of progress in treating the disease, with only three breakthroughs made in the last century due to inadequate research investment.
Sir Gavin attended Pancreatic Cancer UK’s reception, which took place on the 16th June, to hear direct from those affected by the disease, learning of the devastating impact that decades of being overlooked and underfunded due to its rarity and nature has had on people’s lives.
Sir Gavin also spoke with scientists funded by the charity to learn about new treatments being developed to bring transformative effects to pancreatic cancer survival in the future.
Currently, 7 in 10 people with pancreatic cancer receive no treatment at all. Just 1 in 10 are diagnosed in time for surgery, the only potential cure, while only a quarter receive life-extending chemotherapy.
The few treatments currently available are too toxic for many people to tolerate, leaving them with only hope to hold on to. Tragically, half of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer die within three months.
As part of the campaign, Pancreatic Cancer UK polled 1,117 people affected by the disease, which is among the deadliest in the UK.
The findings revealed only 9% of patients had access to clinical trials, or to genetic testing of their blood, saliva or tumour tissue to guide treatment.
Further, 40% of patients said they had to travel more than 20 miles to take part in a trial.
Moreover, 41% of said said finding information on clinical trials was difficult.
New, more effective treatment options, with fewer harmful side effects are urgently required. As the disease is most often diagnosed at a late stage, when a patient is unwell and can deteriorate quickly, patients need much faster access to clinical trials to give them a change to participate.
Therefore, Sir Gavin has joined with Demand Survival to call on the UK government to deliver more personalised treatment whenever possible, a system that fast-tracks patients to clinical trials and funding research to support future pancreatic cancer treatments and trials.
Sir Gavin said: “It’s very devastating that so many people with pancreatic cancer receive no treatment at all. Poor access to clinical trials, and few treatment options, mean far too many people are sadly given only hope to hold onto following a diagnosis.
“After decades of being overlooked, and just three treatment breakthroughs in the last century, the recent National Cancer Plan and Rare Cancers Act have laid the groundwork for transformational change. Now, we need action to guarantee commitments are delivered, and more people with pancreatic cancer are given the chance to survive. I hope my constituents will join me in backing this campaign.”
Diana Jupp, CEO of Pancreatic Cancer UK said: “We are extremely grateful that Sir Gavin Williamson has joined us to demand survival now, to ensure more people with pancreatic cancer have options following a diagnosis.
“Access to clinical trials for pancreatic cancer is appallingly low and denying too many people the possibility of more precious time with their loved ones. Persistent underfunding has stifled innovation. The few treatments we do have for the disease are gruelling, and often too toxic for many patients to tolerate.
“The new National Cancer Plan is genuinely ambitious for less survivable cancers and is a welcome blueprint that offers real hope for the future. But action is needed today. Seven in ten people with pancreatic cancer receive no treatment at all – not even chemotherapy. That is totally unacceptable.
“Change is possible if this devastating disease is prioritised, the dramatic improvements in survival for other cancers are proof of that. People with pancreatic cancer deserve more progress. More treatment breakthroughs. They deserve a chance to survive.”
