Commissioned by NHS England and conducted by Picker, the 2024 National Cancer Patient Experience Survey shows 82.7% of patients were informed they could have a family member, carer, or friend present when receiving their diagnosis, an increase from 80.9% in 2023, 75.9% in 2022 and 70.1% in 2021.

Additionally, 84.9% of patients said their family or carers were ‘definitely' involved in treatment decisions to the extent they wanted, up from 83.5% in 2023, 80.0% in 2022, and 74.7% in 2021. 

The majority (94.6%) of all respondents said they were ‘always' given enough privacy when receiving diagnostic test results, unchanged since 2022 and slightly up from 94.4% in 2021, indicating a consistent high standard of care in this area. 

However, only around half (47.7%) said they ‘definitely' received the right amount of GP support, the highest result in four years, and a 4 percentage point increase since 2021.

Jenny King, Picker's chief research officer, said: ‘The 2024 National Cancer Patient Experience Survey findings reflect measurable progress in key domains of person centred cancer care, particularly around the involvement of families and carers and respect for patient privacy. These improvements align with national priorities around shared decision-making and personalised care as seen in the recently published 10-Year Health Plan. While challenges remain, especially regarding the support provided by primary care during treatment, the progress seen here is encouraging. 

‘As the Government prepares to publish the National Cancer Plan later this year, these insights amplify the patient voice and offer timely evidence to inform policy.  The 10-Year Plan for Health states its aim is to ‘put power back in the hands of the people', it is essential, therefore, that future strategies are grounded in the lived experiences of people with cancer.'