Retiring NHS England boss says cancer treatment on ‘cusp of golden era'
In his final interview before retiring, Sir Stephen, 64, told The Times: 'We are at the cusp of a golden era in terms of the way we treat a range of cancers.
'For many cancers now, people should be confident that it's not a death sentence and that more treatments will become available.'
He said the rise in people living longer and surviving cancers would continue, alongside cures for some forms of the disease.
'Our understanding of the genetics of cancer, of the way we can target cancers with particular drugs, and how we can use the body's own immune system to target cancers itself, is being revolutionised,' he said.
He compared the progress made in treating cancer with the success in developing HIV/Aids treatments since he qualified as a doctor 40 years ago.
He also said an increased focus on prevention will help eliminate certain types of cancer.
🧵Today is my last day working at NHS England. It has been an honour to serve as National Medical Director for the last seven and a half years. Thank you to everybody who has supported and encouraged me over the years.
— Professor Stephen Powis (@NHSEnglandNMD) July 10, 2025
'We can't prevent all cancers, but there are cancers that we can certainly prevent,' he said, adding that he hopes lung cancers will become 'a lot rarer'.
Cancer treatment, he said, would be 'driven by genetics' to become more individualised with the increased ability to pinpoint mutations in cells.
His comments come as experts warned of a 'postcode lottery' in cancer services that focus on improving patients' quality of life and providing urgent care for people with the disease.
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP), the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR), the UK Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (UKASCC) and the Association for Palliative Medicine (APM) have called for urgent investment in supportive and acute oncology.
Sir Stephen warned the biggest challenge facing the NHS was the rise in elderly people and the economic pressure that is putting on the younger generation and the economy.
Last week, Sir Stephen warned the British Medical Association (BMA) to 'think really hard' about whether industrial action by resident doctors – formerly junior doctors – planned for later this month is justified.
He told The Times the walkout would cause 'tens of thousands of appointments and procedures' to be cancelled.
The kidney specialist has served as national medical director since January 2018 and held the role throughout the Covid pandemic.
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Cancer treatment is on the "cusp of a golden era", according to NHS England 's outgoing national medical director, Professor Sir Stephen Powis. He expects that the development of drugs harnessing the body's immune system to fight the disease will bring "great advances in cancer survival". In his final interview before retiring, Sir Stephen, 64, told The Times: 'We are at the cusp of a golden era in terms of the way we treat a range of cancers. 'For many cancers now, people should be confident that it's not a death sentence and that more treatments will become available.' He said the rise in people living longer and surviving cancers would continue, alongside cures for some forms of the disease. 'Our understanding of the genetics of cancer, of the way we can target cancers with particular drugs, and how we can use the body's own immune system to target cancers itself, is being revolutionised,' he said. He compared the progress made in treating cancer with the success in developing HIV/Aids treatments since he qualified as a doctor 40 years ago. He also said an increased focus on prevention will help eliminate certain types of cancer. 'We can't prevent all cancers, but there are cancers that we can certainly prevent,' he said, adding that he hopes lung cancers will become 'a lot rarer'. Cancer treatment, he said, would be 'driven by genetics' to become more individualised with the increased ability to pinpoint mutations in cells. His comments come as experts warned of a 'postcode lottery' in cancer services that focus on improving patients' quality of life and providing urgent care for people with the disease. The Royal College of Physicians (RCP), the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR), the UK Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (UKASCC) and the Association for Palliative Medicine (APM) have called for urgent investment in supportive and acute oncology. Sir Stephen warned the biggest challenge facing the NHS was the rise in elderly people and the economic pressure that is putting on the younger generation and the economy. Last week, Sir Stephen warned the British Medical Association (BMA) to 'think really hard' about whether industrial action by resident doctors – formerly junior doctors – planned for later this month is justified. He told The Times the walkout would cause 'tens of thousands of appointments and procedures' to be cancelled. The kidney specialist has served as national medical director since January 2018 and held the role throughout the Covid pandemic.
Sky News
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Many cancers no longer 'a death sentence' as treatment on 'cusp of golden era', NHS England medical director says
Many people with a cancer diagnosis "should be confident that it's not a death sentence and that more treatments will become available", according to the outgoing medical director of NHS England. In his final interview before retiring, Professor Sir Stephen Powis said our understanding of the genetics of cancer and how it can be targeted is being "revolutionised". Sir Stephen, 64 and a kidney specialist who has been the national medical director since 2018 and throughout the COVID pandemic, told The Times: "We are at the cusp of a golden era in terms of the way we treat a range of cancers. "For many cancers now, people should be confident that it's not a death sentence and that more treatments will become available." Sir Stephen said the number of those living longer with the disease and surviving it will continue to increase, while he compared the progress made in cancer treatment to the success in developing treatment for HIV since he qualified as a doctor 40 years ago. He also spoke of how preventing cancers could also help eliminate certain types of them. "We can't prevent all cancers, but there are cancers that we can certainly prevent," he said, adding that he hopes lung cancers will become "a lot rarer". Cancer treatment, he said, would be "driven by genetics" to become more individualised with the increased ability to pinpoint mutations in cells. Recent Sky News analysis shows that in nearly half of 147 NHS trusts with available data fewer people are now being treated for cancer within the target than at the start of the year. That target is for 85% of cancer patients to begin treatment within two months of their diagnosis. Only a small number of trusts have achieved this. While 20 trusts met the standard in January, it is down to 15 trusts in May. Performance against the target fell in 62 areas overall between Jan and May, and none of those were meeting the target to begin with. In response to the analysis, an NHS spokesperson said: "Despite the NHS seeing and treating record numbers of people for cancer... we know there is more to do to improve early diagnosis, access to tests and life-saving treatments. "Our 10 Year Health Plan launched last week sets out some of the ways we will transform cancer care to be fit for the future, including innovation to speed up referral and diagnosis, with more to follow in the National Cancer Plan coming later this year."
