More than four in five NHS trusts put cancer patients at risk of death or serious harm by failing to treat them in time, damning figures show.
Hospitals are supposed to treat 85 percent of patients within 62 days of receiving an urgent referral, to maximize chances of survival.
But today’s latest figures from NHS England revealed that 123 trusts (82.5 per cent) fell short of this target in August.
Cancer charities described the delays as “unacceptable” and called on the government to act urgently to address the “deadly delays”.
More than four in five NHS trusts put cancer patients at risk of death or serious harm by failing to treat them in time, damning figures show.
MP Helen Morgan, the Liberal Democrats’ health and social care spokesperson, who analyzed the cancer statistics (keep them), said: “Receiving a cancer diagnosis is one of the scariest moments of anyone’s life.”
Previous studies have shown that each month of delay in starting cancer treatment typically reduces the chances of survival by 10 percent.
New data exposes that a host of other care targets are also being missed, with experts warning the NHS goes into winter “in poor shape”.
The waiting list for routine hospital treatment in England increased during the first full month of the Labor government, reaching its highest level for ten months.
An estimated 6.42 million patients were waiting for 7.64 million treatments at the end of August, up from 6.39 million and 7.62 million, respectively, since July.
These are the highest figures since October 2023.
The rise comes as some GPs continue to cut the number of appointments they offer by half – to just 25 a day – in a row due to a new contract with the NHS.
Shadow health minister Karin Smyth said: “This government is working at pace to radically reform the NHS through the Ten Year Health Plan.”
Siva Anandaciva, chief analyst at think tank King’s Fund, said: ‘The NHS is heading into winter in poor condition.
‘Industrial action continues, financial pressures are increasing and important performance targets continue to be missed.
‘Despite the hard work of staff, patient care in the NHS continues to fall below expectations.
“The Government has diagnosed that the NHS is broken and now they must fix it.”
NHS England data shows 3,335 patients had been waiting more than 18 months to start routine treatment at the end of August, up from 2,738 in July.
Meanwhile, the number of people who waited more than 12 hours in the emergency room from the decision to admit to actual admission was 38,880 in September, compared to 28,494 in August.
Professor Frank Smith, vice-president of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said: “Too many patients continue to live in pain and anxiety, potentially unable to return to work and help grow our economy.”
Dr Tim Cooksley, immediate past president of the Society of Intensive Care Medicine, said 12-hour waits in A&E were up “more than 20 per cent on last year, at 38,880 patients”.
He added: “This is a terrible situation for patients receiving degrading care in the corridors and for staff who are pushed to the limit.”
NHS England said A&E staff experienced their busiest in September with 2.21 million attendances and 530,824 emergency admissions.
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, added: “These latest figures show that the pressure we saw over the summer is not letting up, with too many patients waiting too long for treatment.”
“We know this is likely to be another incredibly busy winter, with extra demand and the threat of a ‘tripledemic’ of Covid, flu and RSV.”
MP Helen Morgan, the Liberal Democrats’ health and social care spokesperson, who analyzed the cancer statistics (keep them), said: “Receiving a cancer diagnosis is one of the scariest moments of anyone’s life.”
‘Everyone should get the treatment and care they need when they need it. Unfortunately, we have heard countless stories where that is not the case.”
Kate Seymour, head of advocacy at Macmillan Cancer Support, said: ‘Current cancer waiting time figures show that too many people are still waiting too long for cancer treatment.
“Let’s not lose the ability to be surprised by this and remember that behind these unacceptable numbers are real people worried about whether they might have cancer or when their treatment will begin.”
Health Minister Karin Smyth said: “This Government is working at pace to radically reform the NHS through the Ten Year Health Plan.”
