15-05-2025
Doctors' fury at 'disgraceful' cancer waiting times - as new figures show delays have got WORSE for the first time in 7 months
Cancer medics say NHS cancer data shows the 'heartbreaking disaster' of continuing to miss treatment targets.
Health service figures show the proportion of patients being treated within two months of an urgent cancer referral was 71.4 per cent in March this year.
While this is highest figure recorded since 2022 its still far below the 85 per cent target set by NHS England.
Oncologist Pat Price, founder of the Catch Up With Cancer campaign and chair of Radiotherapy UK, said this now meant 30,000 cancer patients had been forced to wait over three months to start treatment this year.
'Today's NHS cancer data doesn't just show missed targets, it shows a catalogue of missed chances to save lives,' she said.
'This is a heartbreaking disaster because every four weeks of delay in starting treatment increases the risk of death by 10 per cent.'
Other NHS data released showed the waiting list for routine hospital treatment has risen for the first time in seven months.
Figure show 7.42million treatments—relating to 6.25million individual patients—were waiting to be carried out at the end of March.
This is a rise from 7.4million treatments—relating to 6.24million individual patients—the month prior.
The data will be a blow to Labour, which is introducing 'carrot and stick reforms' for NHS leaders in a bid to speed up progress across the health service.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has set out plans to reward leaders who slash waiting times and improve services for patients, while penalising failing managers.
He said bonuses and pay rises will be a 'reward and not a right'.
Reacting to the data the Royal College of Surgeons said it raised questions on if Government targets to slash waiting lists can be met.
The body's vice president, Professor Frank Smith, said: 'NHS staff are working tirelessly to get patients seen more quickly. We can't get away from the fact that the pace of progress remains sluggish.'
'Our members frequently tell us they could be doing more surgeries if they had enough operating theatres, or if existing facilities weren't out of commission due to disrepair.
'Without better access to operating theatres for surgical teams, the NHS will fail to make the productivity gains needed to meet targets and patients will continue to endure unacceptably long waits.
'If this government is serious about delivering on its waiting time pledges, it must be realistic and find further capital funding to repair crumbling NHS estates and expand capacity.'
However, the new figures do show some progress in cutting very long waits.
Some 1,164 patients in England had been waiting more than 18 months to start routine treatment at the end of March, down from 1,691 in February.
A year earlier, in March 2024, the number stood at 4,769.
There were also 7,381 patients who had been waiting more than 65 weeks to start treatment, down from 13,223 the previous month. This figure stood at 48,967 in March 2024.
NHS England said the health service delivered over 100,000 more treatments in March compared to the same month last year.
Last March was the busiest ever for the number of tests and checks carried out for patients, it added.
Mr Streeting said: 'Since day one, we have been clear it will take time to reverse the disastrous waiting list we inherited.
'But since July, real progress has been made – including over winter. We have overseen a massive increase in appointments available to meet rising demand, reduced long waits and helped people get diagnosed quicker.
'Thanks to the hard work of NHS staff, we have now delivered more than 3.3 million extra appointments, helping hundreds of thousands of people get off the waiting list and get on with their lives.
'Our plan for change will continue to put patients first as we work to end the misery felt by millions up and down the country who have been denied the care they need for too long.'
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS England's national medical director, added: 'The scale of demand that our frontline NHS teams are managing is enormous.'
'Today's figures show that each month, they are having to not only deal with an historic backlog, but they are also working to keep up with the hundreds of thousands of new patients that need our care.
'In March, we saw a particularly sharp rise in referrals–yet staff still managed to deliver more for patients with 100,000 more treatments delivered and thousands more getting a timely diagnosis for cancer.'
Other NHS cancer data shows only 78.9 per cent of patients had their cancer diagnosed or ruled out within 28 days in March.
This was above the target of 75 per cent but below the 80 per cent ministers want to achieve by March next year.
Figures for A&E performance show 74.8 per cent of patients seeking emergency care were seen within four hours in April, a slight decline from the 75 per cent seen within this timeframe in March.
Both figures were below the NHS target that 78 per cent of A&E patients should be seen within this time.
The number of people waiting more than 12 hours in A&E departments in England stood at 44,881 in April, down from 46,766 in March.
Average ambulance response times in April for the most serious emergencies was seven minutes and 43 seconds.
This is down from seven minutes and 52 seconds in March and is the quickest time since May 2021 – but it remains above the target standard response time of seven minutes.
Reacting to the NHS performance data, Francesca Cavallaro, senior analytical manager at the Health Foundation said they were a reminder of the 'strain' patients and staff were under.
'With a 10-year health plan, urgent and emergency care plan, and forthcoming spending review all due in the next few weeks, the government has the chance to set a clear direction for the health service.
'But ambitions and goals will need to be backed up with investment, reform and a clear plan to achieve them.'
