Some patients at the Royal Oldham’s NHS Trust have been forced to wait more than 200 days to start cancer treatment.
The shocking statistics come after a Freedom of Information Act request by the Labour Party.
The party said data shows that Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, which manages the Royal Oldham, has patients who have had to wait 210 days to start cancer treatment.
The party also says 52 out of 60 NHS trusts which responded saw a patient wait more than half a year to start their treatment in 2022.
The NHS target is for 85 per cent of patients to start treatment within two months (62 days) of an urgent referral.
It comes as separate figures showed just 59.2 per cent of patients in England began cancer treatment within two months of a GP urgent referral.
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Labour Cllr Barbara Brownridge, cabinet member for health and social care at the council, said: “The longer the Conservatives are in power, the longer people in Oldham are forced to wait.
“These aren’t just statistics, these are people’s lives – people living in fear, and cancers being caught too late because patients aren’t seen quickly enough.”
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Wes Streeting, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, said: “The Conservatives have created a crisis in cancer care, leaving patients waiting dangerously long for a diagnosis or treatment when their cancer could be spreading.
“Instead of addressing the problem, Rishi Sunak has now cynically moved the goalposts. The Prime Minister should focus on cutting waiting times, not cutting standards for patients.
“Labour will get cancer patients diagnosed and treated on time again by training the doctors and nurses the NHS needs, and reforming the service to make it fit for the future.”
New plans, known as the Faster Diagnosis Standard, propose that patients in England who have been urgently referred should have cancer ruled out or receive a diagnosis within 28 days.
Oncologist Professor Pat Price, who is co-founder of the #CatchUpWithCancer campaign, branded news of the potential new targets “ominous and deeply worrying”.
She called for more investment into cancer treatment capacity.
In response, a Department for Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “There are record numbers of cancer checks happening in the NHS, meaning almost three million people have received care that could save their lives, and there continues to be steady progress in a lot of areas of cancer performance – including continuing to meet the Faster Diagnosis Standard which means people are diagnosed within 28 days of being seen and the NHS continues to treat thousands of people a week.
“Thanks to the efforts of the NHS to bring more people forward for checks sooner, we’re already seeing major progress with a higher proportion of people than ever before being diagnosed at an earlier stage.
“And we're looking to build on this, including by rolling out a national targeted lung cancer screening programme to catch cases earlier.
“We are also making progress to deliver on our priority to cut waiting lists, backed by the long-term workforce plan and record numbers of staff, to ensure people get the care they need quicker.”
The Northern Care Alliance, which manages the Royal Oldham Hospital, has been approached for a comment about the figures.
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