PMQs: Davey raises Sunak’s failure on cancer as 22,000 people wait more than 4 months for treatment

EMBARGO: Immediate Release 

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey criticised the Conservative government’s record on cancer treatment as he revealed at PMQs that 22,123 people waited four months to start urgent treatment for cancer last year.

That means those 22,123 patients wait more than twice as long as the maximum 62-day wait the government promised. That equates to a staggering one in eight (12.1%) of all patients starting cancer treatment over the past year. 

Davey also put to the Prime Minister the shocking fact that the Conservative government has not met this cancer target once since 2015.

A British Medical Journal study found that every four-week delay for cancer surgery is associated with a 6-8% increase in the risk of dying.

The Liberal Democrat Leader asked the Prime Minister when cancer patients, waiting anxiously for their treatment to begin, can expect to see this 62-day target met – but the Prime Minister failed to give any commitment in his reply.

Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said:

“Having cancer or someone close to you having cancer is one of the hardest things anyone can go through in life. The fear and anxiety of what may come next is a horrible feeling. 

“In these moments, what the government should be able to offer is certainty. Certainty that you or your loved one will be seen on time to give them the best possible chance to beat this disease.

“Instead, cancer patients across the country have been failed by this Conservative government that has brought the NHS to its knees. 

“Thousands are being forced to wait through potentially deadly delays as Ministers fail to get their act together and make any inroads into cutting waiting lists. Patients deserve better than a Conservative government unable to provide vital treatment on time.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

Full text of Ed Davey’s question to Rishi Sunak:

“Last year, after being referred by their GP, 22,000 people waited more than four months to start urgent treatment for cancer. A terrible wait, twice as long as the government’s 62-day pledge – a cancer target it hasn’t met once since 2015.

We all have loved ones whose lives have been turned upside down by cancer, and we all know that every day counts. Waiting reduces the chance of survival.

So will the Prime Minister tell people waiting anxiously for their treatment: when will his cancer target be met?”

Data on 22,123 cancer patients waiting 104 days to start treatment can be found here.

The BMJ study showing a 6-8% increase in the risk of dying due to a four-week delay in cancer surgery can be found here.