West Cheshire is among the most improved areas in the country for one-year cancer survival it has been revealed.

The area has been identified as one of the 20 ‘most improved’ parts of the country.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Cancer has commended West Cheshire for improving one-year cancer survival rates every year since 2000, including a rise from 69.1% in 2010 to 74.4% in 2015.

In recognition of this achievement the NHS West Cheshire clinical commissioning group’s director of commissioning Laura Marsh attended a reception with MPs and peers at the House of Commons on Tuesday (July 17).

She said: “We are delighted that our ongoing, concerted effort to improve cancer care in West Cheshire is having such a significant impact for local patients.

“This is a result of excellent partnership work which encompasses the clinical commissioning group team, GPs and cancer specialists at the Countess of Chester Hospital.

The Countess of Chester Hospital

“Year-on-year improvements against the one-year cancer survival target show that local efforts to focus on early diagnosis are significantly improving patient care but we’re not complacent. We know there is still plenty of work to do.”

In 2016 NHS England made more than £200m available to cancer alliances to help develop new approaches to care which speed up diagnosis and improve cancer outcomes.

In West Cheshire this has helped to develop secondary care pathways which not only ensure more cancers can be diagnosed at an earlier stage but that quicker diagnosis to referral times can also be achieved according to the NHS.

It has also supported the development of enhanced community services following a diagnosis of cancer. Crucially all of these initiatives support improved survival rates for people affected by cancer it is explained.

Lead cancer nurse at the Countess of Chester Hospital, Helen Thomas, said: “It is really positive news that there is an improvement in the one-year survival rate for the population of West Cheshire.

“We will continue to work with the clinical commissioning group not only to raise awareness and improve early diagnosis of cancer but to develop post-treatment support to enable those living with a cancer diagnosis to live as well as possible.”