Cancer campaigner Clive Stone's pride at getting MBE (From Oxford Mail)

Cancer campaigner Clive Stone's pride at getting MBE

9:30am Tuesday 4th January 2011 in News

A CANCER campaigner yesterday dedicated his MBE to “the many we have lost” and said the award has made him more determined than ever.

Oxford Mail columnist Clive Stone, from Freeland, near Witney, was honoured in the Queen’s New Year’s list for his services to health.

The 63-year-old, who was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2007, was put forward for the honour by Prime Minister David Cameron.

Since developing the disease, Mr Stone has since fought successfully to make the kidney cancer drug Sunitinib available on the NHS and in July persuaded the Government to allocate £200m to an emergency drug fund for cancer patients.

Mr Stone – whose name was left off the original list following an administrative error – said: “I’m over the moon with this honour.

“It came completely out of the blue. I received a call from the Government last week, when I was told David Cameron was minded to recommend me for the honour to the Queen.

“It is reassuring to learn that our campaign for access to more effective cancer treatments has finally been acknowledged by policy makers, and our new government, under the leadership of Mr Cameron, have already taken steps to help many patients with the introduction of the Cancer Drugs Fund.”

Mr Stone is a member of the Kidney Cancer Support Network, KCSN, a group which has set up a petition fighting the procedures of the Government’s health advisory panel the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice).

Three years ago he launched campaign group Justice for Kidney Cancer patients.

In August 2008, Mr Stone took a group of campaigners to protest outside Nice’s headquarters in London, as part of a campaign to get Sunitinib, also known as Sutent, to be used as a first line treatment for renal cancer.

Last February he delivered a petition to Downing Street demanding Government change the “appalling” process he says cancer patients have to go through to get vital drugs.

Before the election, he and other campaigners met Mr Cameron, who admitted the country did have a problem with supplying cancer drugs.

Mr Stone said: “This has made me more determined to keep fighting than ever.

“I look forward to the time when our five-year cancer survival rates become the best in Europe, and very ill patients do not have to spend their last days in fighting faceless NHS administrators for access to effective drugs which are freely available in other counties.”

Mr Stone and his wife Jan –who is battling breast cancer – cancelled a trip to Italy this autumn after he was admitted to hospital with a brain tumour in August.

Now, though, Mr Stone said he is feeling better and is ready to carry on battling on behalf of cancer sufferers.