2. Business Statement and Announcement

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:44 pm on 28 June 2022.

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Photo of Alun Davies Alun Davies Labour 2:44, 28 June 2022

Could I ask for a statement, Minister, from the health Minister on the care provided to teenage cancer patients? I was contacted last week by the family of a teenager, an 18-year-old young woman in Blaenau Gwent, who is undergoing some very distressing treatment for cancer at the moment. It is clear, from the treatment that she has received, that there is a structural issue within the national health service, where young people undergoing some very, very significant and difficult treatment do not have access to the care they require. She has been taken to A&E units in different parts of south Wales, where she has not received the treatment she has required. There seems to be a break in the linkage between Velindre and individual hospitals, and the consequence is that the treatment, which is distressing enough, is further distressed and compounded by these matters for her and her family. We all know—those of us who are parents will understand—that there's nothing more heartbreaking than seeing a child in this situation. I've contacted the health Minister and asked for a meeting on this specific issue, but I do believe that the Government should also bring forward a statement on this matter so that we can all be reassured, in whichever constituency we represent, that young people receiving this treatment will have the treatment they require at times and in places they require to have it.