Cancer pathway

GP referral for a suspected cancer

Once your GP has referred you to us, we will contact you with an appointment (usually by telephone).  This appointment will be a maximum of 14 days from your referral.

It is important that you are available to attend your appointment and we recommend that you bring a friend or family member with you.

You are likely to be sent for tests and investigations.  These may be at Colchester or Ipswich hospitals. Sometimes it may seem that you have a lot of appointments and tests in a short timescale.  This is because it is very important that we diagnose and treat your cancer as quickly as possible. Please make every effort to attend.

National standards

There are national standards for cancer waiting times:

• First appointment with a specialist within a maximum of 2 weeks
• A maximum of 31 days for treatment to begin once a decision to treat has been made
• No longer than 62 days overall from your GP referral to your first treatment

NHS waiting times in England (Opens in a new window)

Your pathway through cancer diagnosis and treatment

Watch a video where cancer support worker Julie talks about the different ways you can be referred to the cancer service at ESNEFT. The video opens in a new window which takes you to YouTube where accessibility controls may not be supported.

Watch a video where Sarah talks about the multi-disciplinary team and her role as coordinator. The video opens in a new window which takes you to YouTube where accessibility controls may not be supported.