This is our daughter Kelly. She died tragically, aged 31, due to bowel cancer. Her loss has been devastating to our family and her life expectancy was drastically cut short after her chemotherapy stopped as a direct result of COVID.

Shockingly, waits for treatment continue. Since the pandemic we have seen some of the longest waits for treatment on record and we know that around 1 in 3 cancer patients face treatment delays.  

These waits threaten lives. Every four-week delay in treatment increases the risk of death by 10%. You may have seen our Kelly’s story featured in a Panorama programme called ‘Britain’s Cancer Crisis’ which showed the extent of the problem.

In the past six months, after years of campaigning, we have seen some progress. The government has promised a national cancer plan, and pledged £70million for radiotherapy machines to treat patients and help clear the waiting lists.

But we have a long way to go. And people are waiting now.

Sadly it is too late for Kelly, but we still want to change things for other people, and for other families.  We need a national cancer plan with real accountability, that will ensure all patients get the treatment they need on time; and that our cancer workforce is not impacted by recruitment freezes. In particular, treatments like modern radiotherapy need to be set free from needless bureaucracy.

Please sign this petition to urge the Health Secretary to boost cancer services, at all stages of the cancer pathway. You can also email your MP, learn more about the campaign or share your story with us if you have waited too long for treatment.

If we just get the basics right, we could save 30,000 lives in the next five years. If we think big, brave and bold: the sky’s the limit.

#CatchUpWithCancer