Women who find a lump in their breast may be sent to a neighbouring health board to rule out cancer in the future, a struggling health board has said. It comes as young women suspected of having the disease face waiting lists as long as a year for a diagnostic scan at the Royal Glamorgan hospital in Pontyclun.
Anthony Curtis from Merthyr Tydfil said his family were left anxious when his 20-year-old daughter found a lump in her breast and was told she would need to wait nearly four months to have an ultrasound scan to determine its cause. Even though her doctor escalated her scan as urgent, Anthony said his daughter still faced a 15-week wait.
After seven weeks of constant worry, Anthony said the family felt they had no choice but to spend hundreds of pounds to get a private scan at the Spire hospital in Cardiff. Luckily the lump turned out to be a non-cancerous fiibroadenoma (commonly referred to as a 'breast mouse'), but Anthony said the experience shocked him and his family.
