As National Clinical Director for Cancer, I am delighted to confirm that two new National Clinical Leads for Cancer Drugs have been appointed to replace Professor Peter Clark, who played such a leading role in making sure NHS patients had the best possible access to new cancer treatments.

Professor Ruth Plummer, Clinical Professor of Experimental Cancer Medicine (Newcastle University) and Professor Stephen O’Brien, Professor of Haematology, both based at Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, will take up their posts on 1 September 2025.

With expertise across both solid cancers and blood cancers, Ruth and Stephen will provide NHS England with the clinical and health economic expertise to support commissioning decisions on new cancer therapies, including management of the £340 million Cancer Drugs Fund that enables early patient access to new treatments while further data is collected on their benefit.

Working in partnership with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), pharmaceutical companies, patient groups and many others, the national clinical leads will play a fundamental role in expanding access to clinically and cost-effective cancer treatments.

As I told The Times this weekend (Saturday 19 July), we have seen a transformation in our understanding of the biology and drivers of cancer and in the words of Steve Powis, our previous National Medical Director, the NHS stands at the foothills of a “treatment revolution” for cancer. Taking advantage of all this knowledge and scientific progress will require clinical expertise, commercial excellence and a shared understanding with patients, of what matters most to patients.

While taking up her new role at NHS England, Ruth will continue in her role as Director of the Sir Bobby Robson Cancer Trials Research Centre within the Northern Centre for Cancer Care, which is a dedicated early phase clinical trials unit. In 2022 Ruth’s work was recognised with an MBE in the Queen’s Jubilee Honours, following a nomination by Sir Bobby Robson’s wife, Lady Elsie Robson

As well as looking after NHS patients with haematological malignancies, Stephen was previously the Chief Investigator for the national trials in chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML), involving hundreds of patients in hospitals throughout the UK. Stephen’s clinical focus has been the development of a cutting-edge class of targeted cancer therapies, tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). He was the first in the UK to treat blood cancer patients with imatinib, the first approved TKI, 25 years ago. The drug continues to be a standard treatment for patients, while a wide range of other TKIs have since been approved for NHS use.

The decision to appoint both a medical oncology expert and a haematology expert, in Ruth and Stephen respectively, reflects the increased breadth and specialisation of cancer treatments in recent years, and enables NHS England to draw on the very best expertise that each new cancer drug assessment demands.

In addition to her ongoing commitments in Newcastle, Ruth will also continue in her role as Managing Director of the Cancer Drugs Development Forum, the leading non-competitive drug development platform working to stimulate the advancement and accessibility of cancer treatment throughout Europe.

Prior to stepping down recently, Professor O’Brien was Chair of NICE Technology Appraisal Committee C, reviewing cancer medicines to determine whether a new treatment was a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources. He continues to look after patients at the Freeman Hospital.

I’m really pleased that Ruth and Stephen, who have already contributed so much to cancer care and treatment through their roles in Newcastle, will be joining NHS England to help us maximise patient benefit and taxpayer value from our significant spending on cancer medicines.

As we deliver the 10 Year Health Plan for the NHS over the next decade, we will continue to improve cancer survival by adopting the next generation of clinically and cost-effective therapies that offer the promise of more patients being cured of, or living well with, their cancer. As we expand earlier diagnosis using new technologies, and helping people engage with testing and screening through a neighbourhood healthcare approach, I am optimistic for the future of cancer care in this country.