The publication of the ‘Calman-Hine’ cancer policy1 in 1995 marked the first broadly based cancer policy for England and Wales. It defined the principles and structural framework for the delivery of better care for patients with cancer, emphasising the central importance of meeting patients’ needs. A consequence of this approach was the recognition of the importance of inter-disciplinary and collaborative arrangements for the delivery of services. Probably the single most crucial recommendation was that hospital care should be provided by a range of specialists in the disease concerned, working together in site-specific multidisciplinary teams. .
