In January this year, the Department of Health introduced a new requirement that any patient with a symptomatic breast condition be seen by a consultant in their local hospital within 14 days of referral and Buckinghamshire Healthcare are now offering this efficient service to its patients.
 
Previously, a patient who presented with a lump or irregularity in their breast not suspected by their GP to be cancer could expect to wait up to twelve weeks for a hospital appointment. The new and improved system now sees patients being booked in at their local hospital within two weeks, receiving their results immediately after their breast imaging and seeing a consultant surgeon, all within the same appointment. This ‘one-stop-shop’ can lead to a quicker diagnosis and therefore a better outcome, and is available for patients whether they have a suspected cancer or not.
 
Mr Giles Cunnick, consultant breast surgeon at the Trust, said: “The introduction of a ‘two-week wait for all’ is a huge advance for women with breast symptoms. A diagnosis is consequently made much sooner and the vast majority of women can be reassured that they do not have anything serious, relieving their anxiety at an early stage. The few patients who are found to have breast cancer will be treated much earlier, leading to a better outcome”.
 
“We’re really pleased that our patients have access to such an efficient service and continue to work with radiology and surgery to offer the best treatment we can”, adds Mr Cunnick.
 
The Trust has a breast care nursing service at both Wycombe and Stoke Mandeville hospitals, providing diagnostic and treatment services for cancerous and non-cancerous breast conditions, which may present symptomatically or via the breast screening unit.

Each year, approximately 350 people in Buckinghamshire are diagnosed with breast cancer and the county has a high rate of survival, with 86% free of breast cancer five years after diagnosis.
 
Notes to editors:
 
Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust operates from three sites in Amersham, Stoke Mandeville and Wycombe. A wide range of high quality acute services are offered at all three sites, as well as some specialist services, including the National Spinal Injuries Centre (Stoke Mandeville), burns care and plastics sub-regional centre (Stoke Mandeville) and dermatology inpatient centre (Amersham).

Our 4,700 staff serve residents across Buckinghamshire, Thame (Oxfordshire), Tring (Hertfordshire) and Leighton Buzzard (Bedfordshire) - a combined population of 500,000. It serves a much larger population, 1.5m, for burns and plastic services and 14m for spinal injuries.

For further information contact the communications department on 01494 734959 or at communications@buckshosp.nhs.uk.