Getting a well timed analysis for most cancers “shouldn’t be a question of luck”, the Health Secretary has mentioned as he introduced extra funding will be pumped into giving sufferers checks nearer to dwelling.
The Government has invested £237 million for brand spanking new and improved group diagnostic centres (CDCs) throughout England.
Wes Streeting mentioned the brand new CDCs are “part of the biggest expansion in NHS diagnostics in a generation”.
“The NHS delivered a record number of tests and scans last year but there’s still a long way to go before we’re catching disease on time,” Mr Streeting mentioned.
“I was one of the lucky ones – my kidney cancer was caught early, and today I’m living cancer-free.
“But it shouldn’t be a question of luck.
“The NHS should be there for all of us when we need it, catching illness earlier so we can treat it faster.”
- Gorton
- Luton
- Boston
- Bideford
The funding will result in 4 new CDCs in Gorton, Luton, Boston and Bideford, which is able to open in 2026/27.
Some 17 CDCs will be expanded and 15 will obtain enhancements to spice up diagnostic capability, the Department of Health and Social Care mentioned.
Mr Streeting went on: “These new CDCs are part of the biggest expansion in NHS diagnostics in a generation – continuing the progress we’re making and helping save lives.
“We’re not just investing in more, but delivering differently. The NHS should fit around people’s lives, not require patients to fit their lives around the NHS.
“Community diagnostic centres mean patients can get tests, checks and scans while they’re doing their shopping on the weekend or on the way to pick up the kids from school – without travelling across town to a hospital.”
It comes because the NHS plans to publish its newest efficiency figures on Thursday.
The newest information reveals that the ready checklist for routine hospital therapy stays at its lowest stage since early 2023.
An estimated 7.25 million remedies have been ready to be carried out on the finish of January, relating to six.13 million sufferers.
A complete of 135,657 folks had been ready greater than a 12 months to start out routine hospital therapy on the finish of January – the bottom determine for waits of greater than a 12 months since August 2020.
The figures additionally revealed that a complete of 72.8% of sufferers urgently referred for suspected most cancers have been recognized or had most cancers dominated out inside 28 days in January, down from 77.4% in December.
This is under the present goal of 75%.
Professor Stella Vig, nationwide scientific director for elective care at NHS England, mentioned: “We’re making it easier to access care, and our network of community diagnostic centres deliver important diagnostic tests nearer to people’s homes, with new, expanded or enhanced centres available to patients across England.
“This expansion means even more patients can have vital checks like MRIs, CT scans and ultrasounds in a convenient location at a time that suits them, supporting the NHS’s drive to bring down waiting times even further.”
Melanie Sturtevant, affiliate director coverage, proof and influencing at Breast Cancer Now, mentioned: “Right now, too many women are denied access to a swift breast cancer diagnosis and the early treatment that is critical for improving their chances of survival.
“Only 63.6% of breast cancer patients started treatment within 62 days of urgent suspected referral in January this year and there is huge variation in the percentage of people across England starting treatment on time.
“There’s a large gap in waiting times based on results. Only 67.4% of breast cancers were confirmed within 28 days, while 88.4% of people had breast cancer ruled out in this time.
“Investment in community diagnostic centres is welcome, but only a handful of sites in England currently provide mammography, despite breast cancer being one of the most common cancers in the UK.
“To reduce waiting times for breast cancer diagnosis, the Government must prioritise expanding breast imaging capacity as a core part of CDC development.
“CDCs should also be used to promote and deliver screening in a more convenient and accessible way within the communities they serve.
“Breast Cancer Now is ready to work with the Government to identify how this can be done.”
