Charity Raises Alarm Over Cancer Treatment Delays in Wales
A charity expresses serious worries about cancer waiting times in Wales, highlighting urgent needs for improvement in treatment services.
Wales, Cancer, Blood Cancer UK, Hodgkin Lymphoma, NHS
Cardiff: A charity is really worried after a report pointed out the need for better cancer services in Wales. It turns out that no health board has hit its waiting time targets for cancer treatment since 2020.
Even with more money being put into the system, the goal of having 75% of cancer patients start treatment within 62 days hasn’t been met by any health board in Wales. This info comes from an Audit Wales report released on January 14.
The report also shows that things got worse after the pandemic, and since early 2022, only between 52% and 61% of patients have been starting treatment on time. Some types of cancer, like lower gastrointestinal, gynaecological, and urological cancers, have especially long waiting times, with some folks waiting over 100 days to begin treatment.
While cancer survival rates in Wales have improved a bit, they still lag behind other countries. In fact, Wales has the second-highest cancer death rate in the UK, right after Scotland, and people in poorer areas are doing even worse.
From 2002 to 2021, the number of new cancer diagnoses jumped by 22%. There’s also been an increase in suspected cancer referrals, which adds to the pressure, even though over 84% of those referred end up not having cancer.
Blood cancer, which is the fifth most common type in the UK, sees around 41,000 new cases each year. Blood Cancer UK helped with the report and took part in discussions about the national approach.
Hilary Webb from Blood Cancer UK said the findings are really concerning for those newly diagnosed with cancer in Wales. She emphasized that people with blood cancer deserve quick diagnoses and top-notch treatment, no matter where they live.
She also pointed out that while the blood cancer workforce is doing a great job, there’s a pressing need for better national leadership to make the necessary improvements. They fully back the report’s recommendations and want the Welsh Government and NHS to include blood cancer patients and workers in their plans to tackle these issues.
Helen, a Cardiff resident now in remission from Hodgkin lymphoma, shared her own struggles with getting diagnosed. After finding lumps on her neck, she faced delays in getting an ultrasound, which only happened after she pushed for it. Thankfully, she got her diagnosis just in time to start treatment before things got worse.