Macmillan responds to NHS Wales Cancer Waiting Times (December 2025)

Responding to the latest NHS Wales Cancer Waiting Times figures, Rhian Stangroom-Teel, External Affairs Manager for Wales at Macmillan Cancer Support, said:

“Timely cancer diagnosis and treatment is essential, yet thousands of people in Wales continue to face long waits and delays. This month’s slight improvement is welcome, but the overall picture remains deeply concerning, particularly as we head into winter. With Senedd elections fast approaching, the next Welsh Government has a vital opportunity to act and make cancer a priority.

“We need a new cancer strategy, stronger support for healthcare professionals, smarter use of NHS data, and crucially, truly person-centred support. People living with cancer in Wales deserve better than long waits - and the next Welsh Government must deliver it.”

Macmillan’s analysis of the latest official NHS data shows that performance against the national cancer waiting times target in Wales was slightly better in October compared with September and also slightly better than in the month of October in the previous three years. The target was still missed by a substantial margin, however, showing NHS cancer services in Wales remain under intense pressure(i).

• In October 2025, almost 900 people with cancer in Wales waited too long to start treatment(ii)
• The proportion of people who waited too long in October varied from 33.5% to 48.3% across local health boards in Wales(iii)
• Waiting times also vary considerably depending on which type of cancer people have. For example, in October 2025 only 39.5% of people with urological cancer and 41.2% of women and people assigned female at birth with gynaecological cancer started their treatment within 62 days from first being suspected of having cancer, compared with 84.4% of those with skin cancer(iv)
• So far this year, around 8,000 people with cancer in Wales waited too long to start treatment(v)
• Other recent analysis by Macmillan shows people who lived in the most deprived areas of Wales in 2024 were over 1.5 times more likely to die from cancer than people who lived in the least deprived areas after adjusting for age, and the gap is currently bigger than it was 20 years ago, even though the overall cancer mortality rate has fallen over this time(vi)

[i] StatsWales. Cancer waiting times. Accessed 18th December 2025. In October 2025, 59.4% of people with cancer in Wales (1,269 out of 2,137) started their first definitive treatment within 62 days of first being suspected of cancer (target: 75%). Performance in October 2025 was better than in September 2025 (58.8%) and also better than in October 2024 (58.7%), October 2023 (57.6%) and October 2022 (54.0%).

[ii] As per reference 1

[iii] As per reference 1. Performance ranged from 51.7% for the Betsi Cadwaladr local health board to 66.5% for Hywel Dda. Performance figures are not usually reported for Powys as people with suspected cancer in this local health board area are usually referred to another area for cancer tests and treatments

[iv] As per reference 1

[v] As per reference 1

[vi] Public Health Wales. Cancer mortality in Wales. Accessed June 2025. In 2024 cancer mortality rates were 52% higher in the most deprived areas of Wales compared with the least deprived, and 147% higher for lung cancer in particular. In contrast, in 2004 cancer mortality rates were 39% higher in the most deprived areas of Wales compared with the least deprived. Refers to European age-standardised rates for single years; using the three-year rolling average to compare 2002-2004 and 2022-2024 shows a very similar pattern.