Three-quarters of cancer patients in England will survive by 2035, government pledges

Three in four cancer patients in England will beat cancer under government plans to raise survival rates, as figures reveal someone is now diagnosed every 75 seconds in the UK.

Cancer is the country’s biggest killer, causing about one in four deaths, and survival rates lag behind several European countries, including Romania and Poland. Three-quarters of NHS hospital trusts are failing cancer patients, a Guardian analysis found last year, prompting experts to declare a “national emergency”.

In a new plan published today, ministers will pledge £2bn to resolve the crisis by transforming cancer services, with millions of patients promised faster diagnoses, quicker treatment and more support to live well.

Some cancer performance targets have not been met by the NHS since 2015. Under the national cancer plan, all three waiting times standards will be met by 2029, ministers will announce.

And, for the first time, the government will commit to ensuring that, from 2035, 75% of patients will be either cancer-free or living well, which means a normal life with the disease under control five years after being diagnosed. Currently, six in 10 survive five years or more.

According to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), this would mean 320,000 more lives saved over the 10-year plan.

Cancer was “more likely to be a death sentence in Britain than other countries around the world”, said health secretary Wes Streeting, but he was determined to change that. “Thanks to the revolution in medical science and technology, we have the opportunity to transform the life chances of cancer patients.”

“Our cancer plan will invest in and modernise the NHS, so that opportunity can be seized and our ambitions realised. This plan will slash waits, invest in cutting-edge technology, and give every patient the best possible chance of beating cancer.”

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Source: The Guardian, 4 February 2026