Shocking new figures have exposed a critical failure within the NHS to meet key cancer treatment targets, with some patients enduring agonising waits of more than 104 days from urgent referral to beginning treatment. The damning data from NHS England reveals a system under severe strain, where timely care is becoming increasingly elusive for thousands.
National Targets Consistently Missed
The longstanding national target, which aims for 85 per cent of cancer patients to start treatment within 62 days of an urgent referral, has not been met across England since 2014. In response to the immense disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Government set an interim goal for NHS trusts to treat 75 per cent of patients within this 62-day timeframe by March of this year. However, performance remains deeply concerning.
Widespread Trust Failures and Performance Variation
Analysis of 2025 data from 119 acute trusts shows a system in crisis. A mere three trusts managed to hit or surpass the 85 per cent target last year. Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust led with 89.2 per cent of patients seen on time, followed by Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust at 85.8 per cent and Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust at 85.7 per cent.
In stark contrast, performance at the worst-performing hospitals was catastrophic. Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust treated just 45.4 per cent of patients within 62 days. Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust followed, with rates of 50.1 per cent and 53.1 per cent respectively. Overall, only around a quarter of all trusts managed to exceed the lower 75 per cent interim target.
The Human Cost of Delayed Treatment
These extensive delays are not merely bureaucratic failures; they carry grave consequences for patient health. Prolonged waiting times can significantly slash survival chances, render some treatments less effective, and inevitably heighten anxiety for patients and their families during an already distressing period.
The situation was particularly dire at a couple of trusts in December 2025, where at least one in every six patients beginning cancer treatment had been waiting for more than 104 days since their urgent referral.
Stagnant Progress and Systemic Challenges
Nationally, 69.1 per cent of patients (239,038 out of 345,847) began treatment within 62 days in 2025. This represents a slight increase from 67.7 per cent in 2024, but it remains woefully below the official target. While 65 of the 119 trusts saw a year-on-year improvement in this metric, 54 experienced a decline, indicating unstable and inconsistent progress across the service.
Bea Taylor, a fellow at the Nuffield Trust think tank, highlighted the systemic struggle. "The NHS often struggles to sustain progress on improving cancer waiting times," she said, warning that "there isn't time for stagnation" as trusts work towards the 85 per cent target. She pointed to a "considerable gap to close" requiring sustained momentum.
Expert Calls for Investment and Innovation
Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, emphasised the urgency of the situation. "Every cancer patient deserves access to timely, high-quality care," she stated. "Although NHS staff are working hard to cope with increasing pressure on cancer services, far too many people still face unacceptable delays for vital treatment."
Mitchell acknowledged the Government's commitment to meet all cancer waiting times targets in England by 2029 but warned this goal "can't be achieved at the current rate of progress." She called for "more investment in NHS workforce and equipment" as crucial to delivering genuine change.
Taylor expanded on the underlying challenges, noting the UK lags behind other nations in cancer outcomes due to "longstanding gaps in investment and staff," with key diagnostic equipment in short supply compared to countries like Germany and Sweden. These factors hampered post-pandemic recovery. While she suggested leveraging digital technology and AI to speed up diagnosis, achieving world-leading status would require significant commitment of scarce resources within an already pressured health service.
NHS Response and Future Plans
An NHS spokesman responded to the figures, stating: "The NHS is seeing and treating record numbers of patients for cancer, with more than three quarters of people receiving a diagnosis or all clear within four weeks, but there are still too many people experiencing unacceptably long waits for their first treatment."
The spokesman pointed to the "landmark National Cancer Plan," which outlines a roadmap to meet all cancer standards within three years, promising further improvements to personalise care and significantly boost survival rates. Trusts with poor performance have stated they are working intensively to improve care and accelerate treatment for patients.
As the data lays bare a system failing to keep pace with demand, the call for sustained investment, workforce expansion, and technological innovation grows ever louder, with patient lives hanging in the balance.
