Written question asked by Ian Gibson (Labour) on Tuesday, 21 December 2004, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 24 January 2005. It was answered by Melanie Johnson (Labour) on Monday, 24 January 2005 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Dept of Health

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what financial resources have been made available for research into ovarian cancer in the last five years. - Inc figures.

Answer: Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what financial resources have been made available for research into ovarian cancer in the last five years. [207088] Miss Melanie Johnson: The NHS Plan announced that the Department would provide an additional £20 million per year to establish a national cancer research network. The National Cancer Research Network (NCRN) and the National Translational Cancer Research Network were established as a result. The NCRN is currently providing NHS infrastructural support for 11 trials in ovarian cancer. The research costs of these trials are being met by public, private and charity sector funders. The Medical Research Council (MRC) is meeting some or all of the costs of five, including the £8.7 million United Kingdom collaborative trial of ovarian cancer screening. The Department funds research to support policy and to provide the evidence needed to underpin quality, improvement, and service development in the NHS. Research on identifying potentially significant diagnostic factors for ovarian cancer in primary care was commissioned in 2001 and £130,000 has been spent on it. Over 75 per cent, of the Department's total expenditure on health research is devolved to and managed by NHS organisations. Details of individual projects, including more than sixty ovarian cancer research studies, can be found on the national research register at www.dh.gov.uk/research.

Secondary information