NEARLY 400,000 NHS patients have waited longer than two months to start cancer treatment since 2015, according to a report. Cancer Research UK said long delays trigger “stress and anxiety” for people who know they have a tumour. NHS figures show that about a third of new patients wait more than the 62-day target between a doctor’s referral and beginning potentially lifesaving treatment.
The health service target is for 85 per cent of patients to be treated faster than that but it has not been met since December 2015. In that time, CRUK estimates 382,000 people have languished for longer than eight weeks. Chief executive Michelle Mitchell said: “Each of these numbers is a friend, family member, and loved one who is facing unbearably long waits for their treatment to begin, causing stress and anxiety.
” Hospitals say a shortage of staff , cash and scanning machines is slowing down cancer clinics. Cases are rising every year , with 2.2million more tumour diagnoses expected in the next five years.
Ms Mitchell said: “Nearly one in two people will get cancer in their lifetime and it affects every family in every community. “Any incoming UK government must make tackling cancer waits a top priority.” A separate report by the Royal College of Radiologists warned delays in cancer care are now routine.
Mairaid McMahon, from Macmillan Cancer Support, said: “Data consistently tells a story of far too many people waiting too long for potentially lifesaving treatment to beg.
