A HOSPITAL boss has confirmed a “significant” number of cancers have gone undiagnosed since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Nick Hulme, the chief executive of East Suffolk and North Essex Foundation Trust, which runs Colchester Hospital, said late cancer diagnosis is significant in north east Essex.

Speaking to the trust’s board of governors, Mr Hulme said: “We know, particularly in areas of high deprivation, cancer is diagnosed much later.

“We also know the later the diagnosis, the worse the prognosis.”

The trust is believed to have missed almost 16 per cent of new cancers over the past year during the pandemic.

Mr Hulme said: “We estimate a significant number of cancers have gone undiagnosed because of so many services closing down such as screening or diagnostics and because of people being afraid to come forward with symptoms.”

This issue is “exacerbated” even further in areas of high deprivation in north east Essex.

According to the latest figures, just 70 per cent of cancer patients at the trust started treatment within two months of an urgent GP referral in March this year - short of the 85 per cent target introduced by the NHS a decade ago.

Although an improvement on 69 per cent in February, it was down from 79 per cent in March last year.

But, 92 per cent of patients did have their first appointment within two weeks of a referral in March, close to meeting the NHS target of 95 per cent.

Macmillan’s head of policy Sara Bainbridge said a long-term plan is needed to tackle the treatment backlog and improve cancer care.

She said: “These results show signs of improvement but the data rounds off a devastating year of disruption, which has seen tens of thousands of people missing a diagnosis or experiencing changed and delayed treatment, while their chances of survival potentially worsen.

“As Covid-19 pressures lift, the Government can no longer put off fixing the chronic undersupply of cancer staffing.”