MP urges Government to stop dragging their feet over new radiotherapy study

Local MP Tim Farron has pressed the Government to stop dragging their feet over a new study which looks into the effect that long travel times have on a cancer patient's ability to recover.

Back in January, during a Westminster Hall debate on access to cancer treatment led by Tim, the health minister Jackie Doyle-Price announced that the Government will produce a report on whether travel times affect treatment outcomes.

The Department for Health said the report would be made available this Spring but it is still yet to be published.

In a letter, Tim pressed Jeremy Hunt to announce a date for the publication of the report.

Currently most people in South Cumbria needing radiotherapy treatment have to travel over an hour to their nearest radiotherapy unit in Preston.

Tim said: "The promise of this study back in January gave our campaign for a satellite radiotherapy unit at Westmorland General Hospital a great cause for optimism.

"However, three months later and we've had nothing from the Government about when this will be made available, while many people in our area continue to be forced to make 2-3 hour round trips to Preston five days a week for weeks on end to receive life-saving treatment.

"After the Government cancelled plans for a radiotherapy unit in Kendal back in 2015, they should not be dragging their feet over this."