Shaping the future of cancer care in Wales: Our vision for the 10-year strategy

At Tenovus Cancer Care, we see every day how a cancer diagnosis turns someone's life upside down. Its impact goes far beyond medical treatment, affecting mental health, finances, employment and family wellbeing.

With the Welsh Government developing a new 10-year cancer strategy, Wales has a vital opportunity to transform cancer care and support for the future.

Public Health Wales projects that annual cancer cases will increase by 11% between 2025 and 2035, from 20,031 to 24,371. Preparing for this growing demand requires a forward-thinking approach that puts people at the heart of cancer services.

We've submitted our response to the consultation, setting out what must change to ensure everyone affected by cancer in Wales receives the care and support they deserve.

Tackling inequalities across Wales

While timely, high-quality medical treatment is vital, improving cancer outcomes means looking beyond clinical care and considering the whole person.

Where you live in Wales can significantly affect your cancer journey. People in the most deprived communities face a much higher risk of dying from cancer than those in the least deprived areas, with this gap widening over recent decades.

Barriers include difficulties accessing GP appointments, lower awareness of symptoms and the financial burden of travelling long distances for specialist care.

We want tackling inequality and supporting the whole person to sit at the heart of the new strategy, ensuring everyone has fair access to timely diagnosis, treatment and support, wherever they live.

Improving early cancer diagnosis in Wales

Diagnosing cancer earlier can save lives and improve treatment outcomes. We are calling for targeted action to make this happen:

• Prioritising less survivable cancers: Six cancers – lung, liver, brain, oesophageal, pancreatic and stomach – have an average five-year survival rate of just 16%. Often presenting with vague symptoms, these cancers must be a priority for earlier diagnosis.
• Delivering lung cancer screening across Wales: With a national screening programme for eligible people aged 55 to 74 with a history of smoking due to begin in 2028, we want a clear commitment to full national rollout and strong uptake.
• Expanding access to innovative diagnostics: NHS Wales must improve access to Rapid Diagnostic Clinics and explore wider use of non-invasive tools, such as the capsule sponge test to help detect oesophageal cancer earlier.
• Introducing Jess's Rule in Wales: Too many people, particularly women with gynaecological symptoms, face repeated GP appointments before receiving a referral. We want Wales to introduce Jess's Rule – a 'three strikes and rethink' approach, encouraging GP teams to review a diagnosis when someone presents three times with persistent or worsening symptoms.

Together, these changes could reduce diagnostic delays and give more people the best chance of receiving treatment earlier.

Why cancer support matters beyond treatment

Good cancer care doesn't stop at the hospital doors. People need practical, emotional and financial support throughout their journey, from diagnosis and treatment to living beyond cancer or receiving end-of-life care.

Charities provide essential frontline support, helping people cope with the impact of cancer and manage their treatment.

A diagnosis can bring immediate financial pressures, including loss of earnings and rising heating and travel costs. Between 2021 and 2025, our Benefits Advisors helped secure around £15 million for people affected by cancer. Since mid-2026, we've also delivered the pan-Wales Money and More Cymru service in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support.

Emotional and clinical support are equally important. Since 2022, our bilingual Counselling service has received nearly 2,400 referrals, while our Sing with Us choirs help reduce anxiety and build community connections.

Our free Support Line and Nurse Callback service also offer vital reassurance, with specialist nurses checking in on people receiving chemotherapy and immunotherapy at home to help manage side effects before they become more serious.

We want the new strategy to formally recognise and integrate third-sector support into NHS care pathways from day one, ensuring people can access the right help at the right time.

Better cancer data and patient voices

Improving cancer care requires modern, joined-up digital systems and better data to understand patients' experiences and needs.

Wales does not routinely publish comparable national data on where patients receive their cancer diagnosis, including how many are diagnosed in Accident and Emergency departments.

Ethnicity data is another significant gap. While England records ethnicity for 95% of cancer patients, rates in Wales vary between 15% and 55%, depending on the health board. We want the Welsh Government to match England's 95% recording rate within five years, helping identify inequalities and ensure no community is overlooked.

Crucially, the new strategy must be shaped with the people it serves. Established by Tenovus Cancer Care in 2022, the All-Wales Cancer Community now brings together more than 300 members from every health board and a wide range of backgrounds to help shape policy, research and services.

Over the next decade, patients, charities and the NHS must work together as equal partners. By combining medical innovation, earlier diagnosis and compassionate, wrap-around support, we can create a cancer system that truly puts people first.

At Tenovus Cancer Care, we'll continue to champion the voices of people affected by cancer and push for meaningful change across Wales.

Together, we can help shape a future where everyone affected by cancer gets the care and support they deserve.