Integrated Cancer Care

EDM number 57 in 1999-00, proposed by Nicholas Winterton on 18/11/1999.

That this House considers that when curative treatment for cancer is no longer thought feasible, patients have a right to funding for the 'last-hope' treatment of their choice, which may include nutritional and other therapies that have shown benefit in case reports; notes that the South Cheshire Health Authority has agreed to fund part of an integrated care package which includes the Gerson nutritional approach, provided that clinical responsibility is undertaken by an NHS consultant oncologist; recommends that patients who are offered but decline palliative chemotherapy or radiotherapy should have the right to claim similar funding for the therapy of their choice, provided that clinical responsibility can be undertaken by an oncologist; notes that many patients already seek complementary therapies and that many healthcare professionals value their contribution to cancer care; admires the courage of those patients who have successfully undertaken such therapies without adequate financial support; deplores the poor cancer survival rates in the UK compared with other countries in Western Europe where complementary medicine is more widely used; and welcomes the initiative of the Foundation for Integrated Medicine in showing how complementary care can be integrated into the Health Service.

This motion has been signed by a total of 127 MPs, 3 of these signatures have been withdrawn.