A CANCER patient has praised hospital staff after she was given a lifesaving operation just seven weeks after first going to her GP.

Lorraine James said Worcestershire Royal Hospital staff “are worth their weight in gold” and work in almost impossible circumstances due to funding cuts and a growing population.

The 73-year-old, who lives off St Martin’s Quarter, said she saw first-hand the bed shortage issues, with two patients waiting five hours for their operations to start before being sent home without them happening.

She spoke out after the hospital came under fire after failing to meet expected treatment waiting times.

“There are problems, especially with beds, but it’s not the staff’s fault, it’s the funding,” she told the Worcester News.

“The ward I was in, there was only two beds. I was in one and the other had people coming and going. The staff are rushed off their feet but they were all brilliant. They just need to have the beds or the equipment.”

Mrs James went to Spring Gardens Surgery on February 19 before having CT scans and a biopsy and being diagnosed with cancer of the womb.

She then had a pre-op on April 5 and a full hysterectomy operation on April 10 before going home on April 12.

“I feel sorry for those who have to wait [for treatment] but it’s not the nurses’ fault,” continued Mrs James.

“I can remember the old hospital in Castle Street, there wasn’t any of these problems there. They shouldn’t be closing down hospitals and expecting others to take the burden.”

Figures from last year’s annual report show Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust failed to meet expected cancer treatment start dates of 62 days 61.5 per cent of time in 2017/18. This places the trust as low as 126th of 131 trusts across the country.

A Freedom of Information request showed the target was hit in just 53.9 per cent of cases during the 12 months of 2018.

We reported on Monday, how Pershore pensioner Art Lavelle was forced to pay for a private biopsy, costing £1,700, after being told he would be waiting three months on the NHS.

And in January, we reported how the trust was having to move patients from Worcester to Warwick Hospital due to a period of ‘exceptionally high’ demand for beds.

A trust spokesman said staff would be informed of Mrs James’s praise.