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Since the launch of the Emergency and Health Transformation Program, the number of cancer patients undergoing surgery outside the Maximum Guaranteed Response Time (TMRG) has dropped by almost a third. As of April 30, a total of 9,374 cancer patients were registered for surgery, of which almost half had already exceeded the recommended operating time. Of the registered and scheduled patients, 4,274 patients had been waiting beyond the prescribed deadline (2,645 registered patients and 1,629 scheduled patients), a number that decreased to 1,879 on July 26 (1,517 patients and 362 patients, respectively).
According to data released by SNS, surgery was completed for nearly 20,000 cancer patients within three months, significantly reducing surgeries outside the recommended period, although 1,879 people were still in this situation.
Source: SNS
These figures reverse the trend of increasing waiting lists observed in recent years and reveal a faster pace of progress in the treatment of oncological cases. According to data published by the ERS, in the second half of 2023, 29,549 operations were carried out; if at the current rate, half of the operations currently being carried out, then within the six months of the Health Emergency and Transformation Plan, the number of operations on cancer patients will reach 40,000, thus achieving the goal of significantly reducing the surgical list.
It should also be noted that the proportion of cancer patients undergoing surgery outside the maximum recommended time has been growing since 2021. According to data released by the industry regulator, this proportion has continued to increase in the immediate recovery after the end of the epidemic (from 28% to 21% after the deadline).
Source: ERS
“Of the total number of cancer patients who underwent surgery in the first half of 2022, 24.9% waited longer than the legally required period, which equates to a 7.1 percentage point increase in non-compliance with the TMRG. Nearly half of these cases were considered very high priority, the ERS report noted.
Source: ERS
The slight improvements achieved were not enough to break the cycle of increasing delays, with more than 21.5% of surgeries exceeding the deadline by the end of 2022. At the time, 1,302 users were waiting for their first oncology appointment, 51% of whom waited longer than the maximum time stipulated, according to the Health Regulatory Authority.
The ERS report from the second half of last year confirmed that the situation had not improved by 2023. Focusing on waiting times for cancer surgery, it was confirmed at the end of last year that 22.7% of cancer patients were waiting for surgery beyond the maximum guaranteed response time, with a waiting time (median) of approximately 26.4 days.
For oncological diseases, the rules state that scheduled surgery must be performed within 72 hours of the need for surgery in emergency cases and within a maximum of 15 days in high-priority cases. Normal cases may take up to 180 days.
The report cites that for first consultations for confirmed cancer patients, “61.7% of consultations conducted in the second half of 2023 exceeded the TMRG”, adding that “at the end of the second half of 2023, 10,775 users were waiting for a first consultation for suspected or confirmed neoplastic disease, of which 81.5% of the waiting users exceeded the TMRG”. For ordinary priority cancer patients, a consultation is expected to be conducted within 30 days of requesting it, and the rule for high priority cases is 7 days.
Ana Paula Martins launched the Health Emergency Plan at the end of the month of her term as Minister, which includes five strategic axes with different measures and established priorities, including the OncoStop plan, which provides for the regularization of waiting lists for oncological surgeries, one of the most urgent things. “Response to time and time (10 measures); safe babies and mothers (10 measures); urgent and emergency care (13 measures); intimate and family health (12 measures) and mental health (9 measures) are the results set by the Minister of Health for emergency measures up to three months, results for the priority measures until the end of the year and medium- and long-term results for the measures to be considered for construction.
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