Commons Sense

House of Commons · Adjournment Debate

Neuroblastoma Treatment

15 June 2023 · 1 other contributor

Opened by Peter Gibson Con Darlington

NHS

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Peter Gibson raised concerns about neuroblastoma treatment in the House of Commons. A government minister responded. Other MPs also contributed.

Key points

  • MP Peter Gibson secured a debate to raise awareness about neuroblastoma and shared the story of his constituent Mark Bell's son Luke, who passed away from the disease.
  • The Minister acknowledged the debate's importance and expressed condolences to Luke's family, emphasizing the Government's commitment to speed up cancer diagnosis and improve treatment effectiveness.
  • Funding of 519,000 has been committed from the Wellcome Trust for groundbreaking research on neuroblastoma.

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Opened the debate

Peter Gibson Con Darlington

MP Peter Gibson secured the debate to raise awareness of neuroblastoma, focusing on his constituent Mark Bell's son Luke who passed away from this cancer. He shared Luke’s story and how it led to the establishment of the Team Luke Foundation. The speech highlighted the difficulties faced by families during diagnosis, emphasising that early detection is crucial for better outcomes in treating neuroblastoma. Gibson also listed signs parents should be aware of when suspecting childhood cancer and urged the Minister to work with him on speeding up diagnosis and research into treatments.

Other contributors (1)
  • Will Quince Con St Helens North

    Expressed condolences for Luke’s family and praised Mark Bell and his wife Rebecca for founding the Team Luke Foundation to raise awareness of neuroblastoma.

Government Response

Eleanor Laing

The Minister acknowledged the importance of the debate and sent her condolences to Luke's family. She highlighted the Government’s commitment to speed up cancer diagnosis, increase treatment effectiveness using new technologies, and invest in research. The NHS is expanding direct access to diagnostic scans for GPs to reduce waiting times and improve early detection rates. Funding has been committed to support groundbreaking research on neuroblastoma, including an award of £519,000 from the Wellcome Trust for image-guided surgery research at Great Ormond Street Hospital. The Minister also discussed ongoing discussions regarding bivalent vaccine trials for children in remission with neuroblastoma. She reaffirmed that tackling neuroblastoma is a top priority and responded positively to all of Peter Gibson's questions.

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