302 patients at Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation Trust waited over 62 days for cancer treatment between January-November 2025, according to the latest figures, breaching the NHS standard that is considered safe.

This is up by 27 from the same period in 2024. 

Following the announcement of the Government's National Cancer Plan on 4 February, Liberal Democrat MP for Kingston and Surbiton, Ed Davey, has slammed the cancer care crisis in the NHS, with thousands of cancer patients across the country facing agonisingly long waits to get the treatment they desperately need. 

The Liberal Democrats are campaigning for a guarantee that 100% of patients start treatment for cancer within 62 days from urgent referral, with this written into law. 

The party would deliver this through 200 extra staffed radiotherapy machines, new radiotherapy centres to end "radiotherapy deserts", and over 3,000 more cancer nurses to ensure everyone has a specialist supporting them.  

Ed Davey, Liberal Democrat MP for Kingston and Surbiton, said: "Cancer care is broken in our country. 

"Too many people with cancer in my constituency are waiting months for the treatment that they desperately need, which is completely unacceptable.

"Our doctors, nurses, and staff at Kingston Hospital are working so hard, but have been badly let down by those in power. 

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"Cancer services were left on their knees by the previous Conservative Government and Labour have done little so far to end this tragedy. Action must be taken now and the Government must finally offer hope.

"Liberal Democrats would write into law a guarantee for 100% of cancer patients to be treated within 62 days, backed by 200 new staffed radiotherapy machines and thousands of extra cancer nurses."

However, recent national data shows that Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation Trust was ranked 12th out of 121 trusts in England for the proportion of patients starting treatment within 62 days of urgent referral between September 2024 and August 2025.

The Trust has also consistently met the faster diagnosis standard, which requires patients to receive a cancer diagnosis or have cancer ruled out within 28 days of referral, as well as the 31-day decision-to-treatment target.

While performance on the 62-day standard remains below the national ambition, the Trust continues to perform comparatively strongly against many other providers across England.

The Government's National Cancer Plan is expected to set out further measures aimed at improving early diagnosis and reducing treatment delays nationwide.