£1.5m cash boost to speed up treatment for breast cancer

BREAST cancer patients will be seen faster in Lothians following a £1.5m investment by health chiefs.

NHS Lothian wants more women to be treated within 31 days of diagnosis.

The health board is consistently hitting the Scottish Government's 62-day target, and is one of the best-performing in Scotland, but wants to improve further.

However, figures from January to March, the most recent available, show that only 72 per cent of patients were seen within 31 days, and that figure had slipped from 82 per cent in 2006.

NHS Lothian has a patient tracking system which means it is aware of all breast cancer sufferers awaiting treatment, how long it has been since they were diagnosed, and how severe their case is.

James McCaffery, NHS Lothian's director of acute services, said: "All patients within the 31-day category are being tracked. We have also put £1.5 million into breast cancer and are recruiting staff in radiology and radiography, as well as breast surgeons."