The number of NHS patients waiting six weeks or more for diagnostic tests has leapt by more than 50%.
According to the latest Department of Health data, at the end of August 5,900 patients in England had been waiting six weeks or more, an increase of 2,100 (56.7%) from July 2010, and 1,900 (46.7%) from August 2009.
The data covers the waiting times for 15 key diagnostic tests carried out in the NHS, including MRI, CT scans and colonoscopies.
Although this is still a small proportion of total NHS patients, it is the first significant increase since the Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley MP, announced that some NHS waiting time targets would be scrapped.
It could also signify how the coalition government intends to deal with the health service.
Following a decline of 500 in May (the last full month of the previous Labour administration) June saw stagnation while July resulted in a 200 patient increase.
Of the patients waiting at the end of August, 98.9% had been waiting under 6 weeks, down 0.4% from July 2010 and 0.2% from August 2009.
In the past year several health insurance providers have brought out products aimed at offering faster access to private diagnostic services.
