Dramatic drop in cancer waiting times for Newham University Hospital

Cancer patients awaiting hospital treatment are now being referred within recommended times according to health officials.

Bart’s Health NHS Trust, which runs Newham University Hospital, said it had met all eight of the consitutional cancer waiting time standards for the last two months. Just 18 months ago, it was only meeting one standard.

To meet the target, 93 per cent of its patients must have gotten their first hospital appointment within two weeks of an urgent GP referral.

Figures show that in April, 97 pc of all cancer patients had their first appointment at Newham University Hospital within the designated two-week period, rising to 100 pc for patients with potential breast cancer.

Dr Angela Wong, Clinical Director for Cancer Performance and Improvement, said: “We are delighted to see that the plans and hard work we put in place are bearing fruit.

“This has been achieved by working together across our hospital sites, teams and primary care as well as other trusts within our sector that we share cancer pathways with.

“We needed to understand where the delays in our pathways were and put in the support and capacity to correct this.”