Cancer patients wait too long for treatment
Charity in plea for ‘decisive action’ on failing NHS
THE NHS is still missing vital cancer waiting times, with figures showing a third of patients in one area had to wait more than two months for treatment to get started.
NHS data showed that from July to September, 87.2 per cent of all cancer patients in Scotland started their treatment within 62 days of being referred to hospital because it was suspected they had cancer.
That is a slight improvement from the previous three months, when the proportion was 86.9 per cent but it means that the standard of having 95 per cent of patients begin treatment within two months has been missed again.
In NHS Orkney, only 66.7 per cent of patients who were urgently referred began receiving help within the stated time.
Campaigners at Cancer Research UK said it was “hugely concerning” the target was not being achieved – and suggested NHS staff could be offered “incentives” not to retire in a bid to improve performance.
Gregor McNie, of Cancer Research UK added: “We need to see decisive action soon.”
Figures showed three health boards met the 62-day standard – NHS Borders, NHS Dumfries and Galloway and NHS Lanarkshire.
The figures also showed less than three-quarters (74.1 per cent) of urological cancer patients started their treatment within two months of being referred. The aim of having 95 per cent of people starting treatment within 62 days was not met for any of the 10 cancer types there are figures for – and in some areas performance worsened.
The figures for July to September showed 94.8 per cent of breast cancer patients who had a positive screen started receiving care in this period, down from 97.1 per cent in the previous quarter.
Meanwhile, 87.5 per cent of women who were referred after cervical screening began treatment within 62 days, compared to 92.6 per cent in March to June.
A target for having 95 per cent of patients begin treatment within 31 days of a decision being made on how best to help them was also missed, according to the figures.
Figures for July to September showed 94.5 per cent of cancer patients started treatment within a month of a decision being made, down from 94.8 per cent the previous quarter.