Cancer patients 'deteriorating' due to staff shortages, radiologists warn

Cancer patients have warned delays in scans could be the difference between life and death as Wales faces a shortage of radiologists.

The Royal College of Radiologists said NHS Wales currently had 88 fewer radiologists than it needed - a 28% shortfall.

For the first time, it has reported seeing some patients' conditions "deteriorating" while waiting for diagnostic scans and tests.

Radiologists are doctors who specialise in using images to diagnose and manage medical conditions and diseases.

Betsi Cadwaladr health board, which covers one of the areas most affected by shortages, said recruitment was ongoing and, despite a substantial increase in demand for scans, reporting times had improved.

Beverly Scott, who was first diagnosed with ovarian and peritoneal cancer 14 years ago, said treatment was keeping her condition stable but without timely scans it was at risk of spreading unnoticed.

Scott, who is a member of Pwllheli and Pen Llŷn cancer support group in Gwynedd, was given five years to live when she was first diagnosed.

She took part in medical trials at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London and said that while there was no cure, continual treatment was now keeping her cancer stable.

Scott said the shortage of radiologists could threaten this stability.

"For the past 14 years, I have lived with scans," she said.

"In cases like mine, delays could cause the cancer to spread further and treatments wouldn't work."

Another member of the group, Karen Jones, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015. She was subsequently diagnosed with colon cancer, and her breast cancer also returned in 2021.

She said: "Waiting for results is the worst part, will it be clear or not?

"It is terrible, horrific and horrendous. You are in total limbo."

North and west Wales are among the areas worst affected by shortages in the UK, with a 42% shortfall in consultant radiologists compared to 22% in south Wales, according to data published in the Royal College of Radiologists' 2025 clinical radiology census.

Clara Day, executive medical director at Betsi Cadwaladr health board in north Wales, said she understood the figures "can be very worrying for patients", adding the health board was "actively recruiting" into both radiology and oncology - the department which handles cancer diagnoses and treatment.

"We are also strengthening our links with the North Wales Medical School to support future workforce development."

She said the health board's clinical strategy for oncology had led to "key developments", including nurse-led clinics and the introduction of colorectal and breast metastatic nurse specialist teams.

"Robust arrangements are in place to maintain safe services, prioritise patients according to clinical need and to continue delivering high-quality oncology care for the people of north Wales," she said.

Day added that "despite a substantial increase in demand for imaging services", partnering with a third-party provider had contributed to a decline in waiting times for scans and results since April.

She said these reporting times were also closely and consistently monitored.

One of the main reasons for the shortage is that Wales has more radiology departments affected by recruitment freezes than anywhere in the UK.

In 2024, the radiology workforce in Wales grew by just 1.1%, far below the UK average of 5%.

Dr Owen Nicholas, a consultant oncologist in Swansea and chair of the Welsh committee for the Royal College of Radiologists, said: "It is not getting better and the patients are now getting affected."

He said the shortage was also impacting staff, adding: "There is a challenge, where you sit in front of a patient who is extremely anxious to know has the treatment worked or has it come back.

"For you to have to say, 'sorry I don't know, because I don't have the report in front of me', or perhaps you cancel an appointment because a scan report has not come back.

"The primary concern is for the patient, but it is not very nice for a clinician to have to do that over and over again."