An anxious Elgin mum was told she would have to wait up to seven months to find out if she had cancer.
The woman went to her local GP surgery two weeks ago after finding a lump on her breast, and was referred to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary for a scan.
But she was horrified when she discovered she would have to wait 27 weeks for an appointment – especially after she phoned Raigmore Hospital in Inverness and found out she would be seen within two or three weeks if she lived locally.
The mum, who does not want to be named, said: “I was advised at the doctor’s appointment that the referral would go to ARI.
“I was however, never made aware of the wait times, nor did I ask because it never crossed my mind that I would be kept waiting long.
“The GP showed a lot of empathy, however she said if she tried to push Aberdeen to see me sooner, it would be declined.”
Last night, NHS Grampian said it was working hard to cut waiting times – including running clinics at the weekend – and insisted if referrals are marked “urgent, suspicion of cancer”, the patient would be seen within four weeks.
The frustrated woman called Raigmore Hospital in Inverness, where she was told it would have been a two-three-week wait if she lived within the required area.
Her GP then recommended she contact a local politician to raise the issue.
She added: “The GP suggested herself that I should speak to the local politician as she too felt this was an unacceptable waiting time and needed addressed at a higher level, to make changes.”
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She contacted Moray MSP Richard Lochhead, who got in touch with NHS Grampian on her behalf – managing to secure an appointment at ARI for November 25.
Mr Lochhead said: “Even though the majority of lumps are not serious or cancer-related, it is a very difficult time for women who have quite rightly contacted their GP as soon as they have detected a lump, and no doubt a week seems like a year when awaiting the results.
“I am now seeking an urgent report from NHS Grampian outlining how many women are waiting for scans and the waiting times.
“Not only that, I am keen to be reassured that the communications are in place to ensure that women who quite rightly are seeking early intervention to minimise risk when a lump is discovered are being provided with accurate advice and timescales.”
The mum said the delay had caused an “abundance of stress and anxiety” on top of an already worrying time.
She added: “I’ve been speaking to other people in the same situation, one woman said that her anxiety was so bad she returned to her own GP, which then resulted in her scan appointment being fast tracked.
“But women should not however have to suffer so severely in order to receive a scan in a more appropriate timescale.”
And last night Gregor McNie, Cancer Research UK’s head of external affairs in Scotland, echoed the sentiment that long waiting times should be taken seriously.
He said: “Waiting to be seen can by a worrying time for patients.
“While the level of cancer risk should be low for a patient who has received a routine referral, these long waits can still cause significant patient anxiety, which is unacceptable.”
An NHS Grampian spokeswoman said: “We were asked to look into the case and we can confirm that the service will be in touch with her to offer her a suitable appointment.
“It is clear this incident has caused her considerable distress and we can only apologise for that.
“Speaking generally, a patient referred for a ‘routine’ breast outpatient appointment may have to wait up to 27 weeks for an appointment.
“However, a patient referred as ‘urgent; suspicion of cancer’ would be seen within four weeks.
“We are working hard to reduce the waiting times for routine appointments and have been running clinics at weekends as part of this.”
A spokeswoman for NHS Highland said: “Our current wait for all breast referrals is a maximum of three weeks.”
