LACK OF STAFF 'TICKING TIME BOMB' IN CANCER CARE

Shock reports highlight dire shortage of Scots radiologists and oncologists

- Ben Borland and Nick Forbes

SCOTS cancer care faces a “ticking time bomb” unless action is taken to recruit more radiologists and oncologists, doctors have warned.

Two damning reports from the Royal College of Radiologists show we have a 25% shortage of radiol-ogists and a 19% shortage of oncologists, with these shortfalls expected to rise to 35% and 31% respectively by 2029.

This is driven, the reports say, by recruitment lagging behind a growing demand for services, and a “retention crisis” that is seeing cancer doctors leaving the NHS at a younger age than ever before.

The RCR said without action to boost staff numbers, patients will face lengthening waits for diagnosis and treatment, and the body warned that a cancer patient's risk of death can increase by 10% for every month treatment is delayed.

Dr Katharine Halliday, president of the RCR, said: "Patients are being failed by a chronic lack of radiologists and oncologists. Despite the best efforts of NHS staff, there aren't enough doctors to ensure prompt, safe and effective care and the outlook is bleak.

"We are doing all we can to boost productivity, but there's a limit to how far we can go.

"The reality is we simply don't have enough staff.