To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will meet with the Lobular Moon Shot Project to discuss funding for lobular breast cancer research.
This answer is the replacement for a previous holding answer.
Answered on
21 March 2025
The Department invests £1.6 billion each year on research through its research delivery arm, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR research expenditure for all cancers was £133 million in 2023/24 reflecting its high priority.
We are proud to have invested £29 million into the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) and the Royal Marsden NIHR Biological Research Centre in 2022, supporting their efforts to strengthen research into cancer, including lobular breast cancer. Wider investments into breast cancer research include a £1.3 million project to determine whether an abbreviated form of breast magnetic resonance imaging can detect breast cancers missed by screening through mammography, including lobular breast cancer.
On 4 February 2025 the Department announced that almost 700,000 women across the country will take part in a world-leading trial to test how cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) tools can be used to catch breast cancer cases earlier. The Early Detection using Information Technology in Health (EDITH) trial is backed by £11 million of Government support via the NIHR.
The NIHR continues to encourage and welcome funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including lobular breast cancer. Improving outcomes for people with cancer is a priority for the Government.