The Christie is playing a leading role in shaping national cancer care, with the appointment of Dr Robert Metcalf as National Clinical Lead for Rare Cancers on NHS England’s National Cancer Board.
Dr Metcalf, Consultant Medical Oncologist and Divisional Medical Director at The Christie, will provide clinical leadership nationally on rare cancers, working across the NHS to improve outcomes and ensure people living with rare cancers have equitable access to specialist expertise, high-quality treatment and research opportunities.
There are over 200 types of rare cancer, each affecting a relatively small number of people. These can be sub-types of common cancers such as lung or prostate cancer, or less common cancers, such as brain cancer.
Rare cancers present challenges for patients and healthcare professionals. Diagnosis can be more difficult, specialist expertise may be concentrated in fewer centres, and opportunities to develop and test new treatments can be more limited. Collectively, however, rare cancers represent a substantial proportion of cancer diagnoses.
In his new national role, Dr Metcalf will work with patients, clinicians, researchers and national organisations to improve treatment pathways for patients and standardise care across the country.
Dr Metcalf will work with other consultants across the country, all of whom have expertise in different types of rare cancer. One of these experts is The Christie’s Professor Catherine McBain, who is the National Clinical Advisor for cancers affecting the brain and spinal cord.
In this role, the priorities will include improving earlier and more accurate diagnosis, strengthening access to specialist multidisciplinary expertise, expanding opportunities for research and clinical trials, and ensuring that patients benefit equitably from advances in cancer treatment.
Of his appointment, Dr Metcalf says: “People living with rare cancers can face challenges at every stage of their cancer journey. Their cancers may be less familiar to healthcare professionals, specialist expertise may be concentrated in a relatively small number of centres, and opportunities to participate in research and clinical trials can be more limited.
“Being appointed National Clinical Lead for Rare Cancers is an opportunity to help address these challenges at a national level. We need to make sure that rarity does not become a barrier to high-quality care, specialist expertise or research.
“A major priority will be improving the visibility of rare cancers across the NHS, so that patients are diagnosed as accurately and as early as possible and can access the right expertise when they need it.
“We also need to listen to the experiences of people living with rare cancers. The patient voice should be central to how we design and improve services, and we need to be able to demonstrate that the changes we make are delivering better outcomes and more equitable access to care.”
Dr Metcalf will continue his clinical, academic and leadership roles at The Christie alongside his national responsibilities.