Vulnerable children denied surgery as cancer patients prioritised
Cancer waiting time pressures have led an acute trust to withdraw an offer to treat children with complex needs in its theatres.
Oxford University Hospitals Foundation Trust is struggling with the target – which requires 75% of cancer patients to be treated within 62 days of referral. Its performance averaged 65% during the third quarter of 2025-26, placing it 91st out of 118 acute providers.
The acute trust has previously allowed dental services provider Oxford Health FT to use theatres at its Horton General Hospitals to treat paediatric patients whose procedure required a general anaesthetic.
This access has now been stood down until at least October 2026. OHFT said the suspension would “significantly impact our waiting lists”.
As of April, 145 children were waiting for extraction at the Horton. Of those, 49 were already waiting over 18 weeks, and the longest wait was already five months.
Children on the Horton list cannot safely receive care in a standard dental practice due to complex needs – such as learning disabilities, neurodiversity, behavioural issues, medical conditions and phobias – and need to be treated under general anaesthetic.
Oxford Health told HSJ it is “using its adult theatre lists for children where appropriate” to mitigate the impact of the suspension on children’s waits. This list contains adults with special needs who also cannot be treated in a standard setting, who also face long waits for treatment.
Most community dental services, which deliver care to vulnerable patients, are not part of an acute trust. Providers are therefore reliant on arrangements with acute providers to access theatres for general anaesthetic sessions.
British Dental Association chair Eddie Crouch told HSJ: “Many dentists doing these extractions are fighting a losing battle for priority. Year-long waiting lists have too often been the norm for vulnerable young patients, many struggling to eat, to sleep, and to learn. We shouldn’t be forced to play a zero-sum game for theatre space.”
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Source: HSJ, 5 June 2026