Glenn Page, Policy and Public Affairs Manager for Macmillan Cancer Support, says:
“Two years on from the Welsh Government’s plan to transform care and reduce NHS Wales waiting times, today’s new cancer waiting times figures show there has been no real improvement.
“Around half of people diagnosed with cancer are having to wait more than 62 days to start treatment. There are real people’s lives behind these unacceptable figures and at Macmillan we hear every day from patients and their loved ones about the unbearable anxiety and worry these delays cause — on top of everything else a diagnosis brings.
“Despite the best efforts of hardworking healthcare professionals, cancer care in Wales is in crisis and survival rates are as much as 20 years behind other countries.
“We are calling on the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care to update the nation on what progress has been made toward delivering on the commitments the Welsh Government has made to improve cancer services and tackle long waiting times, to ensure people living with cancer can get the care and support they need.
“If you or someone you love is affected by cancer, we’re here, whatever you need to ask. Call Macmillan’s free support line on 0808 808 00 00, open everyday 8am to 8pm.”
[Ref: Our programme for transforming and modernising planned care and reducing waiting lists in Wales APRIL 2022
A Cancer Improvement Plan for NHS Wales 2023–2026]
“Two years on from the Welsh Government’s plan to transform care and reduce NHS Wales waiting times, today’s new cancer waiting times figures show there has been no real improvement.
“Around half of people diagnosed with cancer are having to wait more than 62 days to start treatment. There are real people’s lives behind these unacceptable figures and at Macmillan we hear every day from patients and their loved ones about the unbearable anxiety and worry these delays cause — on top of everything else a diagnosis brings.
“Despite the best efforts of hardworking healthcare professionals, cancer care in Wales is in crisis and survival rates are as much as 20 years behind other countries.
“We are calling on the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care to update the nation on what progress has been made toward delivering on the commitments the Welsh Government has made to improve cancer services and tackle long waiting times, to ensure people living with cancer can get the care and support they need.
“If you or someone you love is affected by cancer, we’re here, whatever you need to ask. Call Macmillan’s free support line on 0808 808 00 00, open everyday 8am to 8pm.”
[Ref: Our programme for transforming and modernising planned care and reducing waiting lists in Wales APRIL 2022
A Cancer Improvement Plan for NHS Wales 2023–2026]
Key facts
- In May 2024, more than 800 people with cancer in Wales waited more than 62 days to start treatment from first being suspected of having cancer — this was approaching half (45%) of all those who started treatment in that month[i]
- Performance showed a slight improvement from the previous month, however it was still worse than in the same month for three of the past four years, showing that NHS cancer services in Wales are still struggling under intense pressure[ii]
- Recent Macmillan analysis shows 2023 was the worst year on record for cancer waiting times in Wales[iii]
- The national cancer waiting times target in Wales has never been met since first being introduced, and an interim recovery target set by the Welsh Government has also been missed[iv]
- For some cancer types, performance remains particularly concerning. For example, in May 2024 only one in three people with urological cancer (33.3%) started their treatment on time, with a similar figure for head and neck cancer (34.3%)[v]
- Recent Macmillan analysis shows that survival rates for at least two common types of cancer in Wales (colon and rectal cancer in women) are only just now reaching the levels that Sweden and Norway were already achieving in the early 2000s[vi]
References
[i] Figures based on Suspected Cancer Pathways data from StatsWales, accessed 18th July 2024. In May 2024, 55.4% of people with cancer in Wales (997 out of 1,800) started their first definitive treatment within 62 days of first being suspected of cancer. This was 1.6 percentage points higher than the previous month and means 803 people in Wales were left waiting too long in May 2024
[ii] As per ref 1. Equivalent figures for comparison are: May 2024: 55.4%; April 2024: 53.8%; May 2023: 55.7%; May 2022: 54.8%; May 2021: 68.6%; May 2020: 62.6%
[iii] As per ref 1. Overall performance for 2023 was 0.4 percentage points lower than 2022 making it the worst cancer waiting times performance on record in Wales. Across the whole of 2022, 56.2% of people were treated within the 62 days target. In 2023, 55.9% of people started treatment within the 62 days target time
[iv] At least 75% of patients should start treatment within 62 days (without suspensions) of first being suspected of cancer. Data published for time periods before December 2020 are not subject to the target. The Welsh Government’s planned care recovery plan established a new target of 80%, to be reached by 2026. Those targets have never been met, and an interim recovery target that cancer diagnosis and treatment would be undertaken within 62 days for 70% of people by March 2023 was also missed
[v] As per ref 1
[vi] See this press release for full analysis and sources: Macmillan Cancer Support. UK cancer care ‘stuck in the noughties’. June 2024 (accessed July 2024)
[ii] As per ref 1. Equivalent figures for comparison are: May 2024: 55.4%; April 2024: 53.8%; May 2023: 55.7%; May 2022: 54.8%; May 2021: 68.6%; May 2020: 62.6%
[iii] As per ref 1. Overall performance for 2023 was 0.4 percentage points lower than 2022 making it the worst cancer waiting times performance on record in Wales. Across the whole of 2022, 56.2% of people were treated within the 62 days target. In 2023, 55.9% of people started treatment within the 62 days target time
[iv] At least 75% of patients should start treatment within 62 days (without suspensions) of first being suspected of cancer. Data published for time periods before December 2020 are not subject to the target. The Welsh Government’s planned care recovery plan established a new target of 80%, to be reached by 2026. Those targets have never been met, and an interim recovery target that cancer diagnosis and treatment would be undertaken within 62 days for 70% of people by March 2023 was also missed
[v] As per ref 1
[vi] See this press release for full analysis and sources: Macmillan Cancer Support. UK cancer care ‘stuck in the noughties’. June 2024 (accessed July 2024)
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