Cancer waiting times?

Hi RJN1

Welcome to the Online Community here at Macmillan. I hope you find it a helpful place to access support and ask questions. My name is Vanessa, and I am one of the cancer information nurses here at the Macmillan Cancer Support Line.

I am sorry to hear of the delays you are experiencing.

As we are not directly involved in your treatment and cannot access NHS records, the question you ask is a little unclear and that limits some of the information I can provide. You can call one of our nurses directly if you want to talk over your concerns and give more detail, this may allow us to give you some additional information and support.

You mention guarantees and I wonder if you are referring to cancer waiting time targets? These targets relate to the initial diagnosis and treatment of a cancer or recurrence, so I am not sure if these are relevant in your situation.

Whenever anyone has concerns about their treatment our normal advice is to contact the allocated nurse specialist or Consultant to discuss further.

I can see that you have already done this. I am sure these are challenging conversations but you may need to keep going back to them to try and get your appointments as soon as possible.

Without additional information, I’m unable to give hospital specific information. In most hospitals however there is a Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALs). PALs aim to help you resolve any concerns or problems you may have with your NHS treatment. They are normally listed on the hospital website or could be contacted by phoning the hospital and asking to be put through to PALs.

Another option would be to ask for some support from external services including:

The advocacy people

Healthwatch

I hope you find this information helpful. You can also always call one of our nurses directly if you want to talk over your concerns or require any further support.

Take care

Vanessa G, Cancer Information Nurse Specialist 

You can also speak with the Macmillan Support Line team of experts. Phone free on 0808 808 0000 (7 days a week, 8am-8pm) or send us an email. 

Ref VG/AP

Thank you, the current issue has been resolved with the help of my CNS. I suppose I just wondered at the actual use of all these treatment guarantees. I have had so many delays over the past years since each step of various scans, radiologist shortages etc all adds up to many months of waits for just about anything. 

Hi RJN1 

Thanks for getting in touch with our online community again. My name’s Louise and I’m one of the Cancer Information Nurse Specialists here. 

I’m pleased to hear your issue has been resolved with your CNS. 

I can see my colleague mentioned cancer waiting times in relation to the treatment guarantees you mention. These waiting times are targets the healthcare team use with the aim of starting treatment within a certain time frame. Sometimes treatment times fall outside of these targets because everyone’s situation is different and sometimes getting a treatment plan can take longer. 

Many people can find waiting for treatment frustrating. Many people also worry that their cancer might progress while they are waiting for treatment. It might be helpful to talk with your healthcare team about the delays you have experienced, and any concerns you may have.   

My colleague also mentioned PALS. You can contact PALS to feed back any experiences. They can also find out information from your healthcare team if you are having difficulty.  

Some people find it helpful to share experiences with others in a similar situation. You can find this type of support here on our online community lung cancer forum I can see you have joined. You can also find support in your area.  

You can also call us. One of our nurses would be happy to talk things through. 

Kind regards   

Louise, Cancer Information Nurse Specialist   

You can also speak with the Macmillan Support Line team of experts. Phone free on 0808 808 0000 (7 days a week, 8am-8pm) or send us an email.   

Our Ref: PW