Cancer backlog could take till 2033 to clear without more consultants, says report

Clearing the backlog of cancer cases missed during the covid pandemic could take the NHS more than a decade without an ambitious recovery plan and an increase in the number of consultant oncologists, policy experts have warned.

A report from the think tank the Institute for Public Policy Research and CF, a health consultancy and data analytics company, estimated that even if hospitals could maintain activity levels 5% above pre-pandemic levels it would still take until 2033 to clear the backlog of patients across the cancer care pathway.1

The report forecasts that cancer backlogs could be cleared by next year if activity levels were increased and maintained at 15% …