Co-founder of the #CatchUpWithCancer campaign, Professor Pat Price, a leading oncologist commenting on NHSE latest stats on cancer waiting times (March 14,2024), said:
“This data is a disaster for cancer patients, there is a cancer crisis baked into the system and it is getting worse. The 62-day target for starting treatment is at the worst level since NHS records in April 2022.
“And in January 2024, over 3,000 cancer patients waited over 3 months to start treatment. This adds to the 220k cancer patients already waiting too long over the last three years.
“International cancer benchmarking experts are clear, the UK has poor cancer survival because we do not offer enough cancer treatment and patients face treatment delays.
“The public wants cancer to be a top priority, over 600,000 people have signed the #CatchUpWithCancer petition.
“I am once again urgently appealing to Ministers and NHS officials to take urgent action. By any metric available we see cancer treatment delays remaining at near-record levels.
“We desperately need a radical new cancer plan and a clear implementation plan to improve waiting times and cancer survival.”
