Over 400,000 patients forced to wait 6 weeks or more for medical imaging
Nearly 2 million people in the United Kingdom are stuck in a queue waiting to complete their imaging exams.
The National Health Service reports that while 1.92 million patients have been affected by the backlogs, 400,000 have been subject to wait times that are six weeks or longer—well above national benchmarks.
Imaging wait times have wreaked havoc across the pond. A recent report from the Royal College of Radiologists revealed that the U.K. is “hemorrhaging” money trying to keep up with imaging workflows amid a radiologist shortage. This has caused widespread bottlenecks on both acquiring imaging exams and having them interpreted. NHS estimates that the country spent more than $280 million (USD) in 2025 on outsourcing radiology reads, yet it still has a record number of exams waiting to be interpreted.
A new report from health technology firm Magentus describes a situation that is escalating. According to the findings, backlogs in the region have grown by 500,000 since 2022 and are now 83% higher than they were during the pandemic. This has translated to later diagnoses and delays in treatment for serious conditions.
The report suggests that the biggest backlogs are for ultrasound, with about 674,000 patients in queue; MRI is next in line, at 394,913, followed by CT at 207,524. These figures are not the result of a system that is simply unable to turn out the exams—there were a record number of scans completed in the region in March. Essentially, it is the perfect storm of an aging population with long-term health conditions and the push for earlier detection of disease, which has caused imaging demand to rise sharply.
“It can be difficult to see patients waiting for a test to explain their symptoms, knowing the stress and anxiety that can create for them,” Erika Denton, a professor of radiology at the Norfolk and Norwich NHS trust and one of the experts who contributed to the report, said in a statement. “It is also frustrating for staff, who are working incredibly hard every day to meet rising demand, yet continue to see waiting lists increase.”
To read the full report, including experts’ recommendations on addressing the backlogs, click here.
In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.