Key facts
- The NHS treated 70.7% of cancer patients within 62 days in September, down from 71.9% in August, against an 80% target for March 2027.
- Radiotherapy UK calculated a monthly shortfall of 2,850 patients and a cumulative shortfall of 9,490 against the 62-day target.
- The Midlands had the lowest proportion treated on time at 66.6%, compared with 77.3% in London, the analysis found.
- Cancer Research UK found 55.4% of patients were diagnosed within 28 days of an urgent referral over the last year, against an 80% target.
- The Department of Health and Social Care said all three cancer standards are better than a year ago and pointed to a national cancer plan.
NHS England is on course to miss its interim target of treating 80% of cancer patients within 62 days of an urgent referral or consultant upgrade by March 2027, with the proportion starting treatment on time at 70.7% in September, down from 71.9% in August, according to NHS figures reported by the Guardian.
Analysis of official figures by the charity Radiotherapy UK found the NHS would need to treat 2,850 additional patients on time each month to get back on track, assuming patient volumes remain consistent. That would require 24,400 cancer patients a month to start treatment on time, against about 21,500 currently treated within the 62-day target, leaving a cumulative shortfall of 9,490 patients.
The analysis also found disparities between cancer types. More than two-thirds of prostate and breast cancer patients were treated within two months, at 70.1% and 68.8% respectively, while 60.9% of lung cancer patients and 60% of gynaecological cancer patients were treated on time. For head and neck cancers, 56.5% were treated within the target. The Midlands had the lowest proportion treated on time at 66.6%, compared with 77.3% in London.
Prof Pat Price, chair of Radiotherapy UK, said the government would miss the target because the NHS does not have enough staff or equipment, and that a lack of leadership means thousands more people could die without timely treatment. Mark Lawler, a professor of digital health at Queen's University Belfast, said failures of accountability and focus were to blame.
Separate analysis by Cancer Research UK showed 55.4% of patients were diagnosed within 28 days of an urgent referral over the last year, against a faster diagnostic standard target of 80%, while 79.1% of patients received the all-clear on time. Naser Turabi, the charity's director of health policy and evidence, said hospital capacity had not kept pace with demand, with urgent referrals in England up about 20% over the past four years.
Dr Hilary Williams, clinical vice-president of the Royal College of Physicians, said closing the gap requires more diagnostic capacity in imaging, endoscopy and pathology, alongside treatment capacity in surgery, radiotherapy and systemic treatments. Dr Stephen Harden, president of the Royal College of Radiologists, said shortages of clinical radiologists and clinical oncologists were driving delays and that NHS hiring freezes for these doctors had doubled in the last year.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said cancer waiting times are moving in the right direction, with all three cancer standards better than a year ago and around 290,000 more people over the last year getting diagnosed on time or having cancer ruled out compared with the year before the election. The spokesperson said a national cancer plan would help more people get diagnosed earlier and begin treatment sooner.