A new appointment for a senior Imperial academic and NHS surgeon will help to speed up access to new technology and treatments for patients.

Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham from Imperial’s Department of Surgery & Cancer has been appointed as chair of a joint government-industry group to speed up patient access to ground-breaking technologies and treatments.

The Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC) brings together leaders from the NHS, industry and government to identify the most transformative medical innovations, and will oversee a fast-track route to allow these innovative technologies to be available on the NHS up to four years earlier.

Through the AAC, which will launch later this year, a number of the most promising products will be accelerated through the clinical development and NHS approval processes to treat conditions such as cancer, diabetes and dementia.

The project builds on an £86 million funding package to help innovators gain access to the NHS market and get their products to patients.

Lord Darzi appointment comes after previous chair and former CEO of GlaxoSmithKline, Sir Andrew Witty, resigned in March to avoid any conflicts of interest after he took on a new role as CEO of health consultancy firm Optum.

Lord Darzi said: “Britain is world leading in medical science and research, but we need to make sure that people in the UK are able to reap the benefits of this innovation.

“It is vitally important that patients have rapid access to cost-effective, transformative treatments on the NHS. Doing so will not only improve the health of our patients, but will promote future collaboration between the life sciences sector and the NHS post-Brexit – benefiting the British economy and creating jobs.

“I’m thrilled to be building on the great foundations laid by Sir Andrew Witty for the AAC to deliver this.”

Health Minister Lord O’Shaughnessy said: “I want the UK to be at the forefront of breakthrough treatments and medical innovations – but often it can take too long for products to get from the bench to the bedside.

“The Accelerated Access Pathway will speed up this process so patients can benefit from the best technologies far quicker – and I’m delighted to appoint Lord Darzi as the chair to oversee this important work.”

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This article is based on materials from the Department of Health and Social Care

Top image: Dave Guttridge / Imperial College London