The cancers with longest treatment waits revealed

There is an unacceptable variation in waits for treatment of different cancers in England, an exclusive analysis for BBC News by Cancer Research UK shows.

Patients with cancers affecting the head and neck and bowel are the most likely to face long waits – just over half are seen within the target of 62 days.

In comparison, patients with blood, bone marrow and skin cancers are the most likely to start treatment in time.

The charity said the differences were putting lives at risk, highlighting a study, external suggesting a four-week delay to surgery increases the risk of dying by 6-8% for many cancers.

Jayne Gray, from Leicestershire, died in 2021, aged 64, after bladder cancer led to kidney failure.

Despite a history of cancer, Jayne had waited 74 days for treatment to start, after an urgent referral from her GP.

Cancer Research UK said various factors were behind the differences in waiting times, including more acute shortages of specialist staff for some cancers and the fact some could take longer and were more complex to diagnose.

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Source: BBC News, 20 September 2024

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