Portsmouth's QA hospital to get new cancer detection technology thanks to government funding boost

Portsmouth’s hospital is getting a cash boost to fund new cancer-detecting technologies.
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Queen Alexandra Hospital will be able to replace two CT scanners and three mammography units after taking a share of the extra £200m funding announced by the Prime Minister last month for new cancer screening equipment.

Portsmouth NHS Hospitals Trust is one of 78 trusts across the country that will receive money over the next two years to replace, refurbish and upgrade CT and MRI scanners – bringing in alternatives with lower radiation levels and breast screening imaging and assessment equipment.

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Mark Cubbon, chief executive of Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, said: ‘I was very pleased to receive notification from NHS England and NHS Improvement that they wish to work with us to find a funding solution to the replacement of two CT scanners and three mammography units, as part of a national drive to replace diagnostic equipment which is more than 10 years old.

Queen Alexandra Hospital. GVQueen Alexandra Hospital. GV
Queen Alexandra Hospital. GV

‘We’re already in the process of determining the best route to replace some of our most used and older diagnostic imaging equipment, so this offer of support is welcomed.’

Replacing and upgrading machines will improve efficiency by making them easier to use, being quicker to scan and construct images and reducing the need to re-scan.

Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said: ‘This new state-of-the-art equipment will ensure doctors can help even more people survive a cancer diagnosis and stop the disease as early as possible.

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‘It’s mission critical that the technology our NHS uses to prevent and diagnose cancer is brought into the 21st century. We have backed the roll-out of these new machines with £200m in funding, as part of our Long Term Plan, backed by an extra £33.9bn a year.’

Cally Palmer, national cancer director at NHS England, added: ‘Cancer survival is at a record high thanks to better prevention, earlier diagnosis and world-leading treatments in the NHS.

‘This investment in the best modern scanning technology will benefit patients in every part of England, helping us to achieve the NHS Long Term Plan’s ambitions of catching tens of thousands more cancers earlier when they are easier to treat, saving 55,000 more lives every year.’

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