NHS performance against key cancer waiting times targets has fallen again, the latest figures show.
The Scottish Government has set the target of having 95% of patients start treatment within 62 days of first being referred for help when cancer is suspected, but statistics for the last three months of 2023 show this was achieved for fewer than three-quarters of patients.
Of the 4,457 people referred, 71.1% of patients started receiving treatment within two months, Public Health Scotland data covering October to December last year shows.
This was down from 71.9% in the previous quarter and compares to 83.7% of patients starting treatment within the target time in the last three months of 2019, prior to the Covid pandemic.
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That means NHS Scotland as a whole has not met the 62-day standard since the final three months of 2012.
In the latest figures, only one health board – NHS Orkney – met the 62-day standard, with 100% of patients starting cancer treatment within this time.
In NHS Shetland, only 50% of patients started cancer treatment within two months of first being referred, while in NHS Grampian the figure was 54.4%.
A second target that 95% of cancer patients should start any treatment within 31 days of a decision being made to treat them was “narrowly missed”, Public Health Scotland said.
This target was achieved for 94.1% of the 6,829 eligible patients during the period October to December last year.
That is down from 94.9% the previous quarter, and compares to the 96.5% of patients who started being treated within a month of a decision being made to treat them in the final quarter of 2019.
Eight of Scotland’s 15 NHS boards achieved the 31-day target in the last quarter of 2023 – Golden Jubilee National Hospital, NHS Ayrshire and Arran, NHS Borders, NHS Dumfries and Galloway, NHS Forth Valley, NHS Orkney, NHS Shetland and NHS Western Isles.
Health Secretary Neil Gray said while the NHS remains under pressure, more patients are being treated than before the pandemic.
He also stressed “cancer remains a national priority for the NHS and Scottish Government”.
Mr Gray said: “We’re treating more patients on 62 and 31-day pathways than before the Covid-19 pandemic – over 700 more and over 400 more respectively in this latest quarter.
“The 31-day standard was narrowly missed this quarter, and the median wait for treatment was just five days.
“Nevertheless, we remain absolutely committed to reducing waiting times and a further £10 million of funding has been given in 2023-24 to support this improvement.
“Cancer remains a national priority for the NHS and Scottish Government, which is why we published a new 10-year strategy in June 2023, focused on improving cancer survival and providing equitable access to treatment.”