Surgical wait times for some women's procedures on the rise

Surgery wait times for ovarian, breast, and cervical cancers in Quebec are triple the government benchmarks.

According to the Gazette, the lack of resources, such as nursing staff and budget cuts, are causing a backlog of surgeries while leaving operating rooms empty.

Experts suggest that gynecological cancers may be the most severe. This cancer usually spreads quickly before it is detected. Rather than waiting four weeks from diagnosis to surgery, patients are waiting as long as three months.

According to Dr. Robert Sabbah, President of the Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Quebec, the promise to cut surgery wait times, by the province, saw the most improvements in eye, knee and hip surgeries. It is rare for a doctor to have wait-times less than four weeks.

STORY WRITTEN BY: JAMIE-LEE GORDON