Nearly 70,000 with cancer undiagnosed since Covid

AROUND 70,000 cancer sufferers have missed out on a diagnosis in two years after failing to seek medical attention, official figures suggest.

Experts warn NHS cancer services have failed to recover properly from the impact of Covid-19, which is hampering diagnosis rates. Difficulties accessing a GP are also making it harder to get tests, they add.

It means patients may have a more advanced form of cancer by the time it is confirmed, slashing survival chances and increasing treatment costs.

There were 320,711 pre-Covid cancer diagnoses in England in 2019/20 – equal to 531 cases per 100,000 patients.

This plummeted to 276,979 diagnoses in 2020/21 and 302,803 in 2021/22, as the NHS prioritised Covid patients and GPs slashed face-to-face consultations.

The numbers are equal to rates of 456 per 100,000 and 491 per 100,000, respectively, according to annual data published on Tuesday by NHS Digital.

Had the pre-pandemic diagnosis rate of 531 cases per 100,000 people been maintained in 2020/21 and 2021/22, there would have been an additional 69,508 diagnoses over that period.

Professor Pat Price, a leading

‘Less favourable outcomes’

oncologist and chair of the Catch Up With Cancer campaign, said: ‘Cancer services that were already struggling pre-pandemic have failed to recover.

‘We’re now facing a double blow of not diagnosing cancer patients and then leaving those lucky enough to receive a diagnosis on record waiting lists for life-saving treatment.’

In September 2023, more than 2,800 people with a confirmed cancer diagnosis waited for more than a month to start treatment following the clinical decision to do so, the second highest number on record for England.

Brett Hill, head of health and protection at consultancy firm Broadstone, which analysed the figures, said delayed diagnoses are likely to lead to future complications for patients.

He added: ‘These cases are likely to present further down the line... when treatment will be more complex, more expensive, and unfortunately may have less favourable outcomes.’

Louise Ansari, chief executive of the patient watchdog Healthwatch England, said: ‘Long waiting times to speak to a GP during the pandemic meant long waits for referrals to cancer diagnostic and treatment services.’