Patients will receive cancer test results within 10 days under new NHS plans aimed at increasing survival rates, the Mail can reveal.
NHS England has written to local managers demanding they speed up the time they need to arrange, carry out and analyze blood checks and MRI scans.
This means doctors can start treatment earlier, when the disease is easier to treat, or quickly ease patients’ anxiety if they make it all clear.
The NHS has opened 105 community diagnostic centers in convenient locations, such as shopping centres, to increase capacity.
These “one-stop shops” are expected to prioritize cancer patients, the letter adds.
NHS England has written to local managers demanding they speed up the time they need to arrange, carry out and analyze blood checks and MRI scans. In the photo: Consultant studying a mammogram
NHS figures show that only 58 per cent of cancer patients started treatment within two months of an urgent GP referral. The NHS’s own rulebook states that at least 85 per cent of cancer patients should be seen within this time frame, but this figure has not been met since December 2015
Bosses hope the move will increase the number of patients receiving a cancer diagnosis — or ruling out the disease — within the 28-day goal.
While some tests can be done at the same time, others are not done until the results of previous checks come back.
If there are long delays between tests, someone may wait too long if they need a scan and then a biopsy, for example.
It is clear that less than one in ten trusts are currently turning over cancer test results on average within ten days of a referral.
Everything is expected to meet this timetable by March next year.
In addition, in February, only 75 percent of patients nationally had cancer diagnosed or ruled out within 28 days, according to the latest official figures.
Three NHS England officials – the medical director for secondary care, the national cancer director and the chief operating officer – wrote to integrated care boards and trusts yesterday, saying: ‘We know that shorter waiting times are important for both people with confirmed cancer, where an earlier diagnosis leads to better clinical outcomes; but also for those patients who do not have cancer, in whom rapid results can minimize a period of understandable anxiety.
Improving waiting times for patients referred for urgent suspected cancer will be a critical priority for the NHS over the coming year.
“For these reasons, it is essential that in the coming years our nationwide investments in diagnostic capacity are more clearly prioritized for patients being screened for urgent suspected cancer.”
The number of patients who waited 62 days to start treatment fell from 33,950 in September last year to 19,027 in March this year.
More people are being seen for cancer than ever before, with 470,000 more checkups in the past year than in the same pre-pandemic period.
Progress comes despite the impact of union action that has led to thousands of cancer appointments having to be rescheduled.
Jane Lyons, chief executive of Cancer 52, which represents more than 100 patient support groups, said: ‘For the vast majority of patients whose tests show they do not have cancer, it will rather be a great relief to end the disease. undergoing a period of extreme anxiety. , and for the roughly seven in 100 who are diagnosed with cancer, it’s critical to move on from that period of uncertainty to being able to discuss next steps with doctors as soon as possible.
When were national targets for cancer waiting times last met?
Goal: 93% of patients should see a hospital specialist for suspected cancer within two weeks of an urgent GP referral
Last met: May 2020 and February 2019 out of pandemic
Goal: 85% of patients should start cancer treatment within two months of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer
Last met: December 2015
Goal: 75% of patients should be diagnosed (being told they have cancer, or cancer definitively ruled out) within a month of an urgent referral
Last met: Only achieved within a month since the introduction of the standard in April 2021
‘When we know that a record number of people are being sent by their GPs for cancer testing, it is good to see the NHS making it clear that these patients should be a priority.’
Professor Mike Osborn, President of the Royal College of Pathologists, said: ‘We welcome the announcement of support for pathology services that will help our members provide faster diagnoses that patients need.
Pathologists have long called for improvements in digital pathology and infrastructure to help them provide better patient care.
“We fully support this initiative and the new focus on pathology it should provide will, we hope, make a real difference to patients.”
Dame Cally Palmer, National Director of Cancer and NHS England, told the Mail: ‘It is a testament to the hard work of NHS staff that we are seeing and treating a record number of patients for cancer, and that we have made significant progress in eliminating the backlog and meeting the target of diagnosing three-quarters of people within 28 days – and that’s despite massive demand and pressure on the system.
‘Fortunately, the vast majority of suspected cancer patients waiting for a diagnostic test will not have cancer, but for those waiting it can be a very anxious time, so we are asking trusts to aim for a 10-day lead time between GP referral and tests results for patients – so that we can get things clear to people faster, or in some cases, enable patients diagnosed with cancer to start treatment earlier.
“Lives are saved when cancer is caught early and while we are already diagnosing a higher proportion of cancers at an earlier stage than ever before, we want to make sure we are making the most of the diagnostic capacity in our community centers and hospitals.”
