The Government is determined to ensure access to the services which have delivered this optimism for every person diagnosed with cancer. Effectively tackling the problem of cancer means achieving consistently high-quality specialist services for patients, their carers and their families. Everyone who knows anything at all about the treatment of cancer is aware that, just as with alcoholism, it is not merely the sufferer who is affected but the whole family. We must therefore be cognisant of the huge trauma in families where there is a cancer sufferer or sufferers. We must not merely talk about the treatment of the person unfortunate enough to have cancer. We must also consider the immediate and extended family.