The plan also includes a pledge to meet all cancer waiting times standards by 2029, a major expansion of robot-assisted surgery and faster diagnostics to slash delays.
Health and social care secretary Wes Streeting said: ‘This plan will slash waits, invest in cutting-edge technology and give every patient the best possible chance of beating cancer.'
The NHS has not met is central waiting time target that 85% of patients begin treatment within 62 days of referral since 2014 with survival rates below Romania and Poland for some cancer types.
By March 2029, the plan pledges to meet this target as well as the other two NHS standards with all patients receiving a diagnosis or having cancer ruled out within 28 days of an urgent GP referral and 96% of patients starting treatment within 31 days of the decision to treat.
Only 60% of patients currently survive for 5 years or more and around 2.4m people are currently living after a cancer diagnosis.
The plan sets out sweeping reforms to how cancer is diagnosed and treated, including: a £2.3 bn investment in delivering 9.5m tests by 2029; increasing robot-assisted procedures from 70,000 to half a million by 2035; more treatment at specialist centres; every patient who could benefit offered a test that analyses the DNA of their cancer; and new technology to give patients better access to tests for cancer.
The plan comes as a World Health Organization report reveals four in 10 global cancer cases could be prevented.
Reaction
Dr Hannah Allen, UK GP and chief medical officer at Heidi, the NHS approved AI scribe, commented: ‘AI that improves understanding, recall and care continuity should be considered core infrastructure in modern cancer care and embedded in the National Cancer Plan, rather than treated as an optional add-on.'
Cllr Dr Wendy Taylor, chair of the LGA's Health and Wellbeing Committee, said: ‘We are pleased to see a continued focus on prevention, early diagnosis and tackling the biggest risk factors, including smoking, alcohol, and obesity, which aligns with councils' statutory responsibilities in public health.'
Nuffield Trust deputy director of research, Sarah Scobie, said: ‘The ambition in today's plan is very welcome, and the Government has made the right choice to focus on hitting existing cancer waiting times targets, instead of adding new and unrealistic ones. But the NHS will still find them incredibly difficult to meet based on current performance.'
Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of The King's Fund, said: ‘The system as it stands will not meet the cancer treatment standards by 2029 unless there is a big step change. To that end there remain questions about whether the levers are in place to make this possible and how the system can also meet the new commitments announced in the plan. The Government will need to show it has the answers if it is to achieve its aim of transforming cancer treatment, boosting survival rates and improving quality of life.'
