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<\/p>\nA County Antrim GP has said she is “hugely concerned” for women who need breast cancer treatment in Northern Ireland after three patients in her surgery received late cancer diagnoses.<\/p>\n
The patients are among 32 women in the Notting Hill Medical Practice, based in the Northern Trust, who were red-flagged within a five-month period this year.<\/p>\n
The three women, who have asked for their identities to be protected, had to wait more than eight weeks to be seen by a consultant, while nine others are still waiting, one for more than 10 weeks.<\/p>\n
Dr Jilly O’Hagan told BBC News NI the wait is “traumatic”.<\/p>\n
One of the women said she has been in limbo for months and “just wants the cancer out”.<\/p>\n
She said that after being told there were more than 80,000 women in front of her on the waiting list, she paid for a private diagnosis which confirmed she had stage two breast cancer.<\/p>\n
The woman said she is “furious” about the delay and is feeling the strain mentally and physically.<\/p>\n
Dr O’Hagan said such failings are not happening in England, Scotland and Wales and asked why women in Northern Ireland should be getting a “substandard service”.<\/p>\n
“The new regional breast cancer service is not functioning – there is a bottleneck, they are not meeting the targets for women who are red-flagged,” Dr O’Hagan said.<\/p>\n
“It never used to be like this, it’s not working.”<\/p>\n
Red-flag referral<\/p>\n
A red-flag referral means a GP believes the patient should be treated as a high priority for suspected cancer based on specific clinical symptoms outlined in the Northern Ireland Cancer Network (NICaN).<\/p>\n
These referrals are the highest priority for waiting lists, and patients should ideally be seen by a specialist within two weeks.<\/p>\n
After a diagnosis, there is a 62-day target for treatment to start.<\/p>\n
Between April to June 2025, about 840 patients (67%) waited longer than 62 days to start treatment for cancer following an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Waiting times for breast cancer services in Northern Ireland are the worst in the UK, Cancer Research UK says [Getty Images]<\/p>\n
A woman in the Southern Trust area who has stage four breast cancer said all the “faffing around between various health trusts and hospitals” delayed her diagnosis.<\/p>\n
In her early 40s, she said she is an “emotional wreck” after being told different outcomes between different health trusts.<\/p>\n
“My care has been inadequate, not joined up and impersonal,” she said.<\/p>\n
In June, the woman first felt what she described as like a “pull” under her armpit.<\/p>\n
It was two weeks before she could get an appointment with her GP who on examination felt a “pea-sized” lump and red-flagged her in early July.<\/p>\n
With a history of breast cancer in the family, the woman had received two previous annual mammograms both of which had been clear.<\/p>\n
After she was red-flagged, there was confusion as she received communication between Craigavon Area Hospital and then was referred to the Ulster Hospital, in a different health trust.<\/p>\n
The mother of three considered seeking private treatment in Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland.<\/p>\n
The pea-sized lump had got larger, and her breast was red and swollen.<\/p>\n
Almost 10 weeks after that initial GP appointment, she was diagnosed with stage four cancer in August and began chemotherapy at the end of October.<\/p>\n
“It’s been horrific and my family and I are emotional wrecks,” she said.<\/p>\n
Her experience prompted her to write to the health minister.<\/p>\n
‘UK’s worst cancer waiting times’<\/p>\n
Naser Turabi, from Cancer Research UK, said Northern Ireland’s cancer waiting times are the worst in the UK.<\/p>\n
Too many patients are waiting too long for treatment, particularly for cancers like lung, gynaecological and blood that can often be quite aggressive, Mr Turabi told BBC News NI.<\/p>\n
“It’s a matter of patient safety and survival with around 70% of patients missing the target every month, that represents thousands of people whose treatment is being delayed and they are potentially coming to harm.”<\/p>\n
Research shows that getting treatment quickly is crucial with every four-week delay reducing patient survival by an average of 10%.<\/p>\n