Latest News and Stories

At this week’s national Strategy, Planning and Investment Committee, it was agreed that public consultation could go ahead on proposals to relocate MVCC. This is subject to the normal NHS England assurance processes for schemes requiring public consultation.

This follows news last year that proposals to relocate Mount Vernon Cancer Centre had not been selected to join the New Hospitals Programme, work has continued to discuss possible ways to meet the urgent need to re-provide MVCC services on an acute hospital site.

NHS England’s Chief Finance Officer has provided a commitment in writing to work jointly with commissioning teams to identify the necessary local and national money for the scheme which has been confirmed as a regional priority. The scheme will still require capital funding to be made available before building could begin.

Read more: MVCC Stakeholder Update May 2024

The relocation of Mount Vernon Cancer Centre has not been included in the announcement of New Hospitals Programme schemes (25th May 2023). However, we have been having extremely constructive conversations with the national team in order to reach a conclusion.

It is widely accepted there is an urgent need to re-provide Mount Vernon cancer services on an acute hospital site, and it remains the preferred long-term option, and the right one for patients.

The dedicated staff at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre have been working extremely hard over many years to maintain services despite challenges of poor buildings and a lack of other medical facilities on the same site. The team will keep doing their best for their patients, and to provide support to cancer services at other hospitals.

We will keep working together with our partners - East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, NHS England and UCLH, with patients, carers, staff, Healthwatch, the Cancer Alliances, the new Integrated Care Boards, and other organisations providing cancer care, to ensure patients can access the care and treatment they need, whilst continuing to work with national colleagues on the long-term future.

In addition to this statement, UCLH has reconfirmed its commitment to working with us to find a capital solution to improve MVCC. UCLH has been working for a number of years with NHS England and East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust to support the delivery of high-quality cancer services from Mount Vernon Cancer Centre and to develop plans for a new MVCC on an acute site. Discussions are ongoing about other routes to capital funding for a new centre, and UCLH remains committed to working with all partners to find a capital solution to improve MVCC for patients and staff.

You can find the Secretary of State for Health's full statement here: Health and Social Care Secretary Oral Statement on NHP - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Early detection of breast cancer is important for ensuring the best possible outcome. Get used to checking regularly and be aware of anything that is new and different to you. Visit https://breastcancernow.org for more information and support on breast health.

To learn more about breast cancer treatment at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre, follow the pathway through diagnosis and treatment:

East and North Hertfordshire Charity Trust have created a special guide for staff, patients, and visitors to easily discover and enjoy the beautiful green spaces around the current Mount Vernon Cancer Centre.

As Prostate Cancer Awareness Month 2022 draws to a close, we share an informative video featuring Andrew Gabriel, who runs prostate cancer support groups and educational programmes in the East of England. Andrew has previously led a support group at Mount Vernon Cancer Centre, which he is working to relaunch. In his TEDx talk from earlier this year, he shares what he learned from his own experience with prostate cancer, the importance of early detection and basics of treatment. Thank you, Andrew for your important work!

Please read the latest about the Review in the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre Stakeholder Update August 2022

You can review past Stakeholder Updates and other Review materials in our Document Library

The Paul Strickland Scanner Centre is in the process of a major upgrade. They will be adding two new MRI scanners and a new PET-CT scanner in the next year.

Improvements like this are important to maintaining patient care and safety while a long-term solution for the Service is found. The Paul Strickland Cancer Centre is a key partner to the Mount Vernon Cancer Centre and the Review process. You can read all about their updates and plans for the future in the full article here: Paul Strickland Scanner Centre: News and views.

Please read the latest about the Review in our Mount Vernon Cancer Centre Stakeholder Update March 2022