About time: Zurich teams up with cancer surviving opera singers to shine a light on the impact of cancer waiting times

The song gives voice to those waiting months for cancer treatment

More than one in three patients are now waiting more than two months to start cancer treatment following an urgent GP referral, with one in six waiting more than 90 days, according to new research for Zurich by Professor Hackshaw, at the UCL Cancer Institute.
There is huge variation in waiting times across regions in England. Three in five (59%) patients in the Birmingham and Solihull area wait over two months to start cancer treatment since an urgent GP referral, compared to one in five (21%) in the Surrey Heartlands region.
Prompt intervention is critical; waiting an additional month for surgery could increase the risk of death by between 6-8% for bladder, colon, head, neck, lung and breast cancer.
Two thirds (67%) of patients say waiting for treatment is the hardest part of having cancer, with half (46%) reporting anxiety and a third (37%) fear.
Monica McGhee, whose career as a soprano reeled from opening a Wembley FA Cup Final, to a thyroid cancer diagnosis, has created a new song alongside cancer-beating musicians: tenor Toby Spence, and pianist Lee Michael Walton.