The Department of Health has recently published national statistics on cancer waiting times for the quarter ending December, 2022.

The publication gives details of the waiting times for patients accessing cancer services at hospitals in Northern Ireland during October, November and December 2022.

It also includes reports on the performance of Health and Social Care (HSC) Trusts, including the Western Health and Social Care Trust, against the draft 2022/2023 targets for cancer care services, which state that during 2022/2023, at least 98 per cent of patients diagnosed with cancer should receive their first definitive treatment within 31 days of a decision to treat.

At least 95 per cent of patients urgently referred by a GP with a suspected cancer should begin their first definitive treatment within 62 days.

All urgent breast cancer referrals should be seen within 14 days.

Waiting times for first definitive treatment following a decision to treat (31 day target)

In the quarter ending December 2022, some 2,828 patients commenced their first treatment for cancer following a decision to treat being taken, 5.1 per cent (138) more than in the previous quarter (2,690), and 6.7 per cent (177) more than in the same quarter last year (2,651).

Some 89.3 per cent (2,524) of those patients started treatment within 31 days of a decision to treat, compared with 88.2 per cent (2,373) in the previous quarter, and 90.6 per cent (2,402) in the same quarter last year.

In Western Trust hospitals, during the aforementioned quarter, a total of 471 patients commenced their first treatment for cancer following a decision to treat being taken.

Some 99.4 per cent (468) of those patients started treatment within 31 days of a decision to treat, compared with 99.1 per cent (457) in the previous quarter, and 98.8 per cent (478) in the same quarter last year.

Waiting times for first treatment following an urgent GP referral for suspect cancer (62 day target)

In the quarter ending December, 2022, some 1,387 patients started treatment following an urgent GP referral for suspect cancer, 4.1 per cent (54) more than in the previous quarter (1,333), and 12 per cent (149) more than in the same quarter last year (1,238).

Only 36.5 per cent (506) of those patients started treatment within 62 days, compared with 39.5 per cent (527) in the previous quarter, and 43.2 per cent (535) in the same quarter last year.

In Western Trust hospitals, a total of 290 patients started treatment following an urgent GP referral for suspect cancer.

Some 40.3 per cent (117) of those patients started treatment within 62 days, compared with 46.4 per cent (130.5) in the previous quarter, and 52.8 per cent (137.5) in the same quarter last year.

Patients first seen following an urgent referral for suspect breast cancer (14 day target)

In the quarter ending December, 2022, there were 3,683 patients seen by a breast cancer specialist following an urgent referral for suspect breast cancer, 1.5 per cent (55) fewer than in the previous quarter (3,738), and 6.1 per cent (241) more than in the same quarter last year (3,738).

Some 77.7 per cent (2,863) of those referrals were seen within 14 days of their urgent referral for breast cancer, compared with 63.2 per cent (2,364) in the previous quarter, and 43.6 per cent (1,709) in the same quarter last year.

In Western Trust hospitals, there were 625 patients seen by a breast cancer specialist following an urgent referral for suspect breast cancer.

Some 99.4 per cent (621) of those referrals were seen within 14 days of their urgent referral for breast cancer, compared with 97.3 per cent (646) in the previous quarter, and 64.3 per cent (518) in the same quarter last year.

Across Northern Ireland hospitals, in the quarter ending December, 2022, there were 6,050 new referrals for suspect breast cancer, of which 63.5 per cent (3,844) were urgent.