It is unacceptable, that with all the advances in science, the disease is not being diagnosed and treated quicker. Get the latest top news stories sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter We have more newsletters Get the latest top news stories sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter We have more newsletters Scotland has some of the most highly-skilled cancer nurses and doctors in the world so it is shameful that we are not leading the world in tackling the disease . Instead, we are paying out millions of pounds to patients who are not getting diagnosed with the condition quicky enough or who are being misdiagnosed.
Targets to improve waiting times are there for a reason. It is widely known that the quicker cancer is detected the quicker it can be treated and stopped from spreading. If cancer is diagnosed at stage one or two, the chances of a positive outcome are far greater than if it is found at a later stage.
It is unacceptable, therefore, that with all the advances in science, the disease is not being diagnosed and treated quicker. There is no doubt Covid hit the NHS hard and cancer services were among those affected. But nurses such as Brenda Eadie are right to point out if staffing levels had been at acceptable levels before Covid, there would not have been such a drain on other areas of the health service.
The serious issues on cancer waiting times are down to poor leadership and political failure, and there must be a national mission to get our NHS back on track. Nobody in 21st-century Scotland should die because they are waiting too long for a test. Football is Scotland’s national sport.
The fervour that erupted at the recent Euros in Germany proved the passion for our game remains undimmed. But our story today on red tape stopping three under-18 youth teams from playing regular matches, leaving 50 keen young footballers in the lurch, shames our game. Recent years have brought various initiatives that underline the importance of opening up the games to as many young people as possible.
Playing football gives boys and girls a real sense of purpose and does more to keep kids off the streets than any other sport. Yet, time and again, those in charge of Scottish youth football seem to put red-tape before letting kids play. This latest news comes on the heels of our story about the Comet computer system throwing the start of the season into chaos for tens of thousands of young players.
The blazers running Scottish football need to remind themselves of their most basic duty – to let our young people enjoy playing the beautiful game. Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond. Sign up to our daily newsletter .
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