Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells NHS among few Trusts to meet cancer treatment targets
Despite a national struggle, Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust succeeds in timely cancer treatment
Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust is one of three Trusts in England that met the NHS target for timely cancer treatment in 2025.
The NHS has aimed for 85% of cancer patients to start treatment within 62 days of receiving a referral.
Though this target has not been achieved at the national level since 2014, Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells managed to treat 85.7% of patients within this timeframe last year.
The Press Association's analysis highlights significant discrepancies across England, with only 69.1% of patients nationwide beginning treatment within 62 days in 2025.
This is an improvement from 67.7% in 2024 but still falls short of expectations.
Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust joins Calderdale and Huddersfield and Homerton Healthcare as the only trusts hitting or exceeding the 85% target, with Calderdale and Huddersfield achieving 89.2%.
Contrastingly, Trusts such as Mid & South Essex and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals performed at significantly lower levels, retaining their position among the bottom five as they saw just 45.4% and 50.1% of patients on time, respectively.
Amid the struggle, Michelle Mitchell, CEO of Cancer Research UK, emphasized the need for more investment in NHS workforce and technology to improve waiting times.
In response to ongoing challenges, the NHS has set a new interim target for March 2026 to reach 75% compliance with the 62-day wait goal.
Bea Taylor from the Nuffield Trust highlighted the need for sustained progress to meet these targets, suggesting digital innovation, such as AI diagnostics, as potential avenues for improvement.
While Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells appears ahead, other trusts are applying measures to enhance cancer care timing.
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals' CEO Kirsten Major noted a commitment to addressing performance drops, with actions already in place for improvement.
Similarly, Mid & South Essex NHS Foundation Trust’s Dawn Scrafield pointed to new technologies and increased resources to reduce waiting times.
An NHS spokesman said: "The NHS is seeing and treating record numbers of patients for cancer, with more than three quarters of people receiving a diagnosis or all clear within four weeks, but there are still too many people experiencing unacceptably long waits for their first treatment."
"Our landmark National Cancer Plan sets out a clear roadmap to ensuring we are meeting all three cancer standards to see and treat patients on time over the next three years, with further improvements to make care more personalised and significantly improve survival."