Cancer care improving across Merseyside as waiting time targets are exceeded

Cheshire and Merseyside cancer diagnosis and treatment is showing steady improvement with both Faster Diagnosis and 62-day NHS planning targets for waiting times being exceeded.

New figures from Cheshire and Merseyside Cancer Alliance (CMCA) show that the area has surpassed national performance standards for faster diagnosis and timely treatment.

Figures for the year ending in March show the region met the Faster Diagnosis Standard, with 81.2% of patients receiving a diagnosis or having cancer ruled out within 28 days (against an 80% target) – above the England average of 79.1%. The North West region is the most improved part of England for faster diagnosis with Cheshire and Merseyside being a key contributor to that improvement.

Cheshire and Merseyside was also the third best area of the country for the 62-day referral to treatment target – the best in the North West. In the sub-region, 79.9% of patients were treated in that timescale, well above the national goal for the end of the year of 75% and on track to meet the 2029 target of 85%, as set out in the National Cancer Plan for England.

The 31-day standard, that 96% of patients should have their treatment start within 31 days of a decision to treat them, did not have a specific planning target for the year but is targeted at 94% by the end of the 2026-2027 financial year and 96% by the end of 2027-2028. Cheshire and Merseyside hit 95.7% at the end of March 2026 so is well on track to meet this standard and already achieving the plan for the next year.

Jon Hayes, Managing Director of CMCA said:

“Hitting these targets is an important step forward for cancer care across Cheshire and Merseyside and will reassure patients and their loved ones that cancer services in our region are among the very best,”

“Behind these figures are the teams right across our region working together to make sure people get the right tests, the right information and, where needed, the right treatment as quickly as possible.

“However, there is more to do and our focus is on reducing delays at every stage – from referral and diagnostics through to treatment planning. But these figures are highly encouraging and we are confident we can build on this progress.”

The Faster Diagnosis Standard measures how many people receive a diagnosis – or have cancer ruled out – within 28 days of referral. The 62-day standard tracks the time from urgent referral to first treatment.

“But as much as we want to speed up diagnosis and treatment, we also want to prevent cancer in the first place,” said Jon. “Cheshire and Merseyside has a very high incidence of cancer due to lifestyle and demographic factors, including poverty and our industrial past. But there are practical steps our population can take to cut the chances of developing cancer through healthy lifestyles, not smoking and staying safe in the sun.”

Joan Spencer, Senior Responsible Officer at CMCA, said:

“I would like to congratulate everyone who works in cancer care across all our NHS trusts in Cheshire and Merseyside for their contribution to these improved results. There is much more work to be done but these figures show we are on the right track and are leading from the front in terms of improvements in diagnosis, treatment and care.”