Meeting of the Parliament 04 February 2026
I declare an interest as a practising NHS general practitioner.
As a doctor for over 20 years, I have seen that physical illness and mental health are inseparable. Across NHS Scotland, we recognise that patients undergoing major surgery or systemic chemotherapy, or living with chronic and life-limiting conditions, commonly experience anxiety, depression and trauma-related distress. That is well evidenced in our national code of guidance, and it is reflected in routine primary care practice.
However, cell therapies such as stem cell transplant and CAR-T present a particularly profound mental health challenge, and one that our current systems are not yet consistently designed to meet. Cell therapy is not a single event; it is an extended, high-intensity treatment pathway, and patients often endure prolonged uncertainty before treatment, followed by aggressive conditioning, significant physical toxicity and long periods of in-patient isolation within specialist centres. In Scotland, it frequently means travelling far from home, disrupting family life, employment and social support networks.
From a clinical perspective, cell therapies carry a unique physiological burden. Parents face high-stakes uncertainty. The treatment may offer a cure but it also carries a real risk of severe complications or mortality. Neurocognitive effects, delirium, mood disturbance and post-treatment psychological sequelae are well recognised as both reactions to illness and a direct consequence of treatment-related inflammation and medication.
Families, too, experience sustained emotional strain. They are often excluded from day-to-day care during prolonged admissions, yet are expected to provide complex support once patients return home. As a GP, I frequently see carers in distress, struggling with anxiety, exhaustion and a lack of clear post-treatment guidance.
Crucially, the mental health impact does not end at hospital discharge. Survivorship following cell therapy can involve long-term cognitive impairment, fatigue, fear of relapse and difficulties in reintegrating into work and family life.
In NHS Scotland, much of that on-going care falls to primary care, often without formal psychological follow-up or clear shared-care pathways. That is not to suggest that only cell therapy patients need mental health support; major illnesses and subsequent treatment in hospital are seriously traumatic for people and can often significantly change patients’ lives. However, cell therapies are distinctive in their intensity, duration and complexity, and therefore require a more proactive, embedded and co-ordinated physiological approach.
Recognising the mental health impact of cell therapies is about not exceptionalism but the delivery of holistic, realistic and compassionate care. If all who are involved across NHS Scotland commit to working together towards the report’s recommendations, we can ensure that patients and families in the greater Glasgow region—and, indeed, across the country—receive not only cutting-edge treatment but the psychological support that allows recovery to be truly meaningful.