Alarm over record long waits to start cancer treatment
A CHARITY has raised fears after the toll of cancer patients waiting more than a month to start treatment hit a record high last year.
More than 30,000 waited 31 days or longer after being told they needed surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy, said NHS England.
This is the most since records began in 2009 and more than three times as many as five years ago.
Also, a record 70,000 waited more than two months to start treatment following an urgent referral from a GP for suspected cancer in 2023, the charity Macmillan has revealed.
This comes amid heightened focus on NHS cancer services, following news the King is being treated for an unspecified form of the disease.
Macmillan chief executive Gemma Peters said: ‘Behind the alarming figures are lives turned upside down, with thousands waiting far too long to find if they have cancer and begin treatment, causing additional anxiety at a difficult time.
‘With more than three million living with cancer and an ageing population, this is only set to rise.’ other NHS figures show cancer services improving slightly. A total of 74.2 per cent of patients urgently referred with suspected cancer in December last year were diagnosed or had cancer ruled out within 28 days, up from 71.9 per cent the previous month – but below the target of 75 per cent.
Also, the number waiting more than 12 hours in A&E – from a decision to admit them to being admitted – totalled 54,308 last month , up sharply from 44,045 in December.
A Department of Health spokesman said: ‘Figures also show we saw record numbers of urgent cancer referrals last year and record numbers received a cancer diagnosis or all-clear within four weeks.
‘We have invested £2.3billion on speeding up diagnosis and launched 153 community diagnostic centres across England to help us achieve our aim of catching 75 per cent of all cancers at stage 1 or 2 by 2028.’
An NHS spokesman said it is treating more than double the number of people for cancer than it was in 2010.