Freedom of information request

South West has its say on national NHS proposal
South West forms overwhelming majority in response to cancer service centralisation scheme
A campaign by The Sunrise Appeal charity, which rallied support to keep all radiotherapy services in Cornwall, resulted in thousands of passionate people from the South West contacting NHS England to express their concerns about its ‘Modernising radiotherapy services in England’ proposal.
A freedom of information request has revealed that a staggering majority of responses to the national consultation came from the South West, with almost 90% of over 11,000 responses hailing from the region.
The NHS England scheme threatens to move some radiotherapy services away from departments with smaller catchment populations across the UK. It is anticipated that this would affect rural areas in England the most, including Cornwall and Cumbria.
In total, 11,542 people completed the online survey with their thoughts on the consultation, 10,250 of which came from the South West. Just 1,292 of the total number of responses were submitted from the rest of the UK.
NHS England’s push to centralise radiotherapy services would result in moving some radiotherapy treatments away from the Sunrise Centre at Treliske, Truro, to Plymouth or Exeter, or maybe even Bristol.
Janet Shephard, Former Head of Radiotherapy and Trustee of The Sunrise Appeal, said, “I understand that online consultations usually receive responses in the hundreds, so this is such an overwhelming achievement and we are so incredibly thankful to everyone in the South West and indeed across the UK that took the time to listen to us, respond to the consultation and make their voices heard.”
“It’s encouraging that such a staggering number of people are standing behind our cause and also feel passionate about keeping all radiotherapy services in Cornwall. Come April, we will either be able to celebrate or we will be rallying our supporters once again to take the fight to the next stage!”
“I can say with confidence that this is one public consultation which has not slipped quietly under the radar and I truly believe that together we can do this; together we can make people listen and together we can make a difference.”
The North West region recorded the second highest number of responses amounting to 4.5% of the total received.
In a statement, NHS England said, “Due to the high number of responses received, it will take some time to understand the different views put forward. This data, alongside all consultation feedback, is in the process of being analysed and the intention is to publish the consultation response later this year in Spring.”
Local consultants fear the changes could result in the cutting-edge technology at the Sunrise Centre being underutilised and potentially mothballed in the future. The Sunrise Appeal charity has raised more than £3m to date for world-class oncology services at Royal Cornwall Hospital, Treliske.
NHS England defended the scheme, saying it was looking to maximise the effectiveness of its £130m equipment modernisation investment. This means that while the majority of cancer patients would continue to receive treatment at The Sunrise Centre in Truro, certain treatments for less common types of cancer may have to be carried out at larger centres out of county.
The consultation period closed on 24th January, with NHS England due to make their ensuing recommendations in April.
Official data from an NHS England Freedom of Information Request on 5th February 2018. Respondents broken down from each area of England

Respondent by region	Percentage	Number
Not applicable / regional / national organisation	0.6	72
International organisation	0.1	11
England – North East	0.1	13
England – North West	4.5	515
England – Yorkshire and the Humber	0.3	39
England – East Midlands	1.0	113

England – West Midlands	0.6	72
England – East of England	0.7	75
England – London	0.6	72
England – South East	2.0	235
England – South West	88.8	10250
Scotland	0.1	11
Wales	0.1	15
Northern Ireland	0.1	6
Not answered	0.4	43