Staff shortages in cancer workforce highest in East Midlands
Cancer patients are facing "dangerous" delays to their care because of staff shortages according to the Royal College of Radiologists.
Last updated 7th Jun 2025
Cancer patients are facing "dangerous" delays to their care because of staff shortages across the UK, according to a report, with some of the highest shortfalls in the East Midlands.
And patient safety is being put at risk because of gaps in the cancer workforce, the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) warned.
According to their figures the shortfall in clinical oncologists is 26%. This is the highest of any English region. It is above the English average (15%) and the UK shortfall (15%).
Elsewhere the workforce shortfall in radiologists in our region is at 33%, equal to 135 doctors. The English average is 30% and the UK shortfall 29%, with predictions of the shortfall for both getting worse by 2029.
The college said that any increase in the workforce is not keeping up with patient demand as it called for the Government to act to address the "ticking time bomb" for cancer patients.
It said pledges to bring down cancer waiting lists cannot be delivered without more staff, in two reports on the staff shortages in oncology and radiology.
Staffing issues are creating a "postcode lottery" for patients whereby smaller cancer centres were more likely to report worries over workforce shortages, the RCR said.
The report on oncologists, or cancer doctors, highlights how seven in 10 heads of service at cancer centres said they were concerned about the impact workforce shortages had on patient safety.
And 23% reported they were not allowed to hire more staff thanks to a recruitment freeze.
Matt Sample a senior health policy manager at Cancer Research UK said:
"The picture across the country is very similar in that too many people are waiting far too long for their diagnosis and treatment, and that's emphasised by the fact that that key target for patients to begin treatment within 62 days of their referral hasn't been hit since 2015."
He says it's important for the Governments upcoming caner plan that they set out a plan for meeting those targets, diagnosing more cancers earlier and giving everyone the best possible treatments, but also setting out how they're going to resource that.
"It takes a long time to train staff too. So even when there is posts available, if we don't get ahead of the curve now we can't start training the oncologists and the radiologists that we need right now but into the future too."
Waiting Times
One consultant clinical oncologist told the RCR: "Safe delivery of cancer treatment is becoming increasingly impossible."
Another said: "Our waiting times for breast radiotherapy are now the worst I have ever known in 20 years. Patients are waiting over four weeks to be seen ... and then another eight weeks to start radiotherapy."
Meanwhile, the report on radiologists - the specialists who use clinical images to diagnose, treat and manage medical conditions and diseases, including cancer - highlights how the radiology workforce grew by 4.7% in 2024, but demand for CT and MRI imaging grew by 8%.
One consultant radiologist said: "Patients are waiting longer than they should ... and we have had several delayed cancer diagnoses as a result."
The RCR has predicted that by 2029 there will be a 39% shortfall in the number of radiologists in the UK, and there will be a 19% shortfall in oncologists.
The college said workforce pressures are also forcing staff to take early retirement - the average age of radiologists leaving the NHS workforce is now just 50 years old, down from 55 in 2020, and the average age a consultant clinical oncologist leaves is now 54, from 59 in 2022.
Dr Katharine Halliday, president of the Royal College of Radiologists, 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.
"Any credible plan to cut waiting lists relies on having the headcount to meet the demand we face today, let alone tomorrow.
"The longer we delay action, the worse it gets. The government must train up more radiologists and oncologists to defuse this ticking time bomb for cancer diagnosis and treatment."
The East Midlands Cancer Alliance told us:
“The NHS is seeing and treating record numbers of people for cancer, with more people diagnosed at an earlier stage than ever before, and survival rates in England at an all-time high.
We have developed world-leading programmes, including lung cancer screening in convenient locations such as car parks and are using AI to spot skin cancer, making it easier than ever before to get checked.
More than three-quarters of people in the East Midlands received the all-clear or a cancer diagnosis within four weeks of an NHS urgent referral—enabling early treatment and improving survivorship.
The East Midlands Cancer Alliance remains committed to better patient outcomes, with early diagnosis rates up nearly 5% from pre-pandemic levels, meaning thousands more are diagnosed at stages 1 and 2 each year.”
What does the government say?
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "This Government inherited a broken NHS where too many cancer patients are waiting too long for treatment. But through our Plan for Change, we are determined to tackle delays, diagnose cancer earlier and treat it faster.
"We are delivering 40,000 more appointments every week, investing £1.5 billion in both new surgical hubs and AI scanners, rolling out cutting-edge radiotherapy machines to every region in the country, and backing our radiologists and oncologists with above-inflation pay rises for the second year in a row.
"Later this year we will also publish a refreshed workforce plan to ensure the NHS has the right people in the right places to deliver the care patients need."