7. What steps is the Welsh Government taking to promote awareness of pancreatic cancer in Wales? OAQ(5)0262(FM)

The refreshed cancer delivery plan for Wales, launched today, continues to include a commitment to deliver a programme of awareness campaigns for cancer, including pancreatic cancer.

Thank you, First Minister. Today, I was very proud to once again host an event to mark pancreatic cancer awareness month here in the Senedd. Last year, when I asked you about this, I pressed you on the need to raise awareness. This year, Pancreatic Cancer UK have undertaken research that shows that three quarters of the public in the UK cannot name a single symptom of pancreatic cancer. Would you agree with me that we do now need a step change in this area and will you agree to look at what more we can do to ensure that the public knows what to look for, so that they do go to the doctor’s quickly and give themselves a better chance of survival against what is a very aggressive and difficult cancer to treat?

Hugely difficult: I’ve seen it in more than one individual in my family, and, once it’s diagnosed, it’s hopeless. That’s the usual way with pancreatic cancer at the moment—a 4 per cent survival rate. The difficulty is, of course, that the symptoms are quite general and non-specific, and can be symptoms of any number of conditions. That said, the cancer delivery plan does include the commitment to regular national awareness campaigns. Given the fact that pancreatic cancer is, it seems to me, not hugely unusual as a form of cancer, and given its deadly nature, we do need to work with the medical profession in order to assist not just patients, but GPs as well, in terms of them being able to identify the cancer as quickly as possible, difficult though that is.

First Minister, I’m sure you are aware that there’s been no progress in survival rates for pancreatic cancer during the last 40 years, despite the extraordinary leaps and bounds we’ve made in many other medicines and with many other conditions. Now, there’s currently a research project collating samples from six hospitals across England and Wales, including Swansea’s Singleton, and it’s being undertaken to form a bank of tissue that will help scientists to study genetic changes in the cancerous cells. The aim will be to help detect cases more quickly, because, as we’ve just discussed, once you’ve been detected, it’s usually a bit too late. First Minister, would you take a look at this project and see if there’s any assistance that your Government could provide to support this project, either through our research facilities or in terms of funding to try to move this agenda forward?

I can say to the Member that we are currently funding research trials for pancreatic cancer through Health and Care Research Wales. That’s in collaboration with Cancer Research UK. Researchers in Wales are also part of the European study group for pancreatic cancer trials. That includes population-based studies of genetic predispositions to pancreatic cancer. So, yes, some work is already being funded by ourselves as a Government. She’s right to point out that survival rates have not budged in a long time, so, finding ways where early diagnosis can be improved will be absolutely crucial to increasing five-year survival rates in the future.