Surveys reveal that half of patients with cancer symptoms are still waiting six months to see their doctor.
It is more difficult to treat the disease early, so it can be fatally delayed.
1
Yet 48 per cent ignore “red flag”According to a Cancer Research UK survey, symptoms such as coughing up blood or unexplained weight loss and a new lump that lasts at least half a calendar year are all possible.
The likelihood of receiving help is lower for the poorest.
The charity’s chief exec Michelle Mitchell said: “Spotting cancer early is vital and the first step is getting help for a possible cancer symptom.
“It’s really worrying to see such a large gap in accessing services between the UK’s most and least deprived groups.”
The charity advises ministers to use the proposed health reform proposals and a ten year plan to grab the initiative for improving cancer survival rates.
Ministers stated that they would like to see three out of four cases taken up by the 2028 deadline.
At the moment, it is only one in two. Meanwhile, 10,000 people wait more than three years to see a doctor at a hospital due to a cancer scare.