Question reference: S6W-26207
- Date lodged: 15 March 2024
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Current status: Answered by Neil Gray on 5 April 2024
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to improve equity of access to Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services, particularly in Scotland's more remote and rural NHS boards.
Answer
Officials met with every Health Board’s Cancer Management Team in Scotland, including the Island Boards, in March 2024 to discuss their plans for establishing a Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Service (RCDS). The commitment remains, as reflected in Scotland’s Cancer Strategy, to achieve population coverage of an RCDS for eligible patients by Spring 2026.
The recent University of Strathclyde evaluation report https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/88280/7/Maguire-etal-2024-Final-report-of-the-evaluation-of-rapid-cancer-diagnostic-services.pdf showed that a virtual model is well accepted by patients and will be considered by Boards in the North of Scotland.