Even after getting an urgent referral from the GP, one in three women with potential breast cancer are waiting more than two weeks to see a specialist.
Based on analysis of women referred to hospitals with breast symptoms, more than 55,000 women in England did not have their first consultant appointment within 14 days in the year to March, missing a key NHS target.
According to the data compiled by The Times, since 2018, a higher proportion of patients with all potential cancer types are missing the two-week waiting target, when the national goal that 93 per cent of potential cases should be seen within 14 days was last met.
"We apologise to patients who are not being seen by a specialist as soon as they should,” Sara Randall, the chief operating officer at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said.
“The delay has been caused by staffing challenges for mammographers. We have undertaken targeted recruitment campaigns and have put plans in place for additional clinics, weekend working and insourcing capacity.”
Michelle Mitchell, the chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said: “Long waits for cancer diagnosis and treatment have become the norms. When a matter of weeks can be enough for cancer to progress, this is unacceptable. We need
