January 2016 was a very difficult time for me and my family as we lost my mother Alex to cancer.

To see someone you love battle through copious exhausting treatments over many months is tough.

It did however also open my eyes to the huge value of cancer research, and how we can better improve cancer patients' survival rates and quality of life.

Similarly, a number of my Eddisbury constituents have contacted me recently about their impatience regarding funding for cancer research.

I am proud the UK is a world leader in this field, including nearby at The Christie where my mother was treated, and I recognise the importance of Government investment in driving cancer research forward.

Since 2010, more than £882 million in Government funding has been spent on cancer research across the UK.

Ground-breaking medical research is funded through the National Institute for Health Research, and spending on cancer research has risen from £101 million in 2010/11 to £138 million in 2019/20: the most significant investment in a single disease area.

This funding has supported research that has helped to develop new treatments and increase survival rates over the past decade in the UK.

I know too the Covid-19 pandemic has impacted cancer research, particularly with reference to reduced access to funding for new projects.

Therefore, I welcome the announcement in the Spending Review that £5 billion will be invested in health-related research and development, which is an increase of £1.2 billion on previous commitments.

I was encouraged to learn too the Government co-operates closely with Cancer Research UK in jointly funding Experimental Cancer Medicines Centres, a network of 18 adult centres and 11 paediatric locations across the UK.

This network brings together world-class health researchers and clinicians to work together to generate new approaches to beating cancer.

The Government's 10-Year Cancer Plan will provide a fresh opportunity to focus on how we can develop new treatments and diagnose cancer earlier to improve survival rates and the quality of life for everyone living with the disease.

The call for evidence to help shape the plan ended recently, and the Government is currently reviewing the responses from patient groups and other research funders.

That’s why I am writing to the Department of Health and Social Care so we can better understand how this funding will be allocated to vital cancer research projects here in Cheshire.

For the many families like mine that have had to deal with the consequences of cancer, anything that improves the chances of future generations beating the disease deserves our support.

To get in touch with Edward Timpson about this or other national or local issues, please visit edwardtimpson.com/contact, where you can also sign up for Edward’s Eddisbury Report e-newsletter.