UK pathology services ‘struggling to cope with rising demand’

The government has been warned that increased investment in UK pathology services may be urgently needed to help keep up with demand.

Analysis from Cancer Research UK has indicated that a growing and ageing UK population is resulting in a rise in the number of people being referred for cancer tests, including biopsies and blood tests.

However, pathology staff numbers are not growing proportionately, resulting in a lack of service capacity that could result in delays in cancer diagnoses. This could have serious public health implications.

As such, those in charge of medical education have been called upon to train and employ more people in pathology, as well as other diagnostic health professionals, while the Royal College of Pathologists has been urged to update its guidance and look at new ways of attracting staff to train in pathology.

Up to 70 percent of healthcare decisions taken in the NHS involve pathology-based tests, meaning the implications of this report go beyond cancer care.

Emma Greenwood, Cancer Research UK's director of policy, said: "The diagnostic bottleneck will only get worse without action now and this involves addressing staff shortages in imaging, endoscopy and pathology."

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