Diagnosis: Gender
(asked on 26th March 2026) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made an assessment of diagnostics delays in health issues based on gender; and if so, what reasons they found for those delays.
The Men’s Health Strategy for England explored men’s engagement with health programmes and services. Research shows men can face unique barriers to accessing services, and certain barriers can impact groups of men in different ways or more severely. For example, we know that men are less likely to attend NHS Health Checks. Further information on improving men’s access to healthcare is available at the following link:
The renewed Women’s Health Strategy sets out a bold, long‑term plan to transform how the health and care system listens to, supports and delivers for women and girls. It puts women’s voices and choices at the centre of care, drives faster improvements in services and outcomes that matter most to women, and tackles long‑standing health inequalities across the life course. The strategy aligns with the 10-Year Health Plan to shift care into the community, harness digital innovation and strengthen prevention so women can live healthier, more fulfilled lives.
Cutting waiting lists, including for diagnostic tests, is a key priority for the government. It is unacceptable that some patients are waiting over six weeks for a diagnostic test. But this is also about making the system work better, so existing funding goes further.
We are committed to transforming diagnostic services and will support the National Health Service to increase diagnostic capacity to bring down the size of the list and reduce waiting times. The 2025 Spending Review provides over £6 billion in additional capital investment to strengthen diagnostic, elective and urgent care capacity. But this is also about making the system work better, so existing funding goes further.
Our Elective Reform Plan, published in January 2025, builds on the investments already made with an ambitious vision for the future of diagnostic testing. This will include more straight-to-test pathways, increasing and expanding Community Diagnostic Centres and better use of technology. We will address the challenges in diagnostic waiting times, providing the number of computerised tomography scans, magnetic resonance imaging scans, and other tests that are needed to reduce waits. Our nationally published data does not break down test recipients by gender. Our investment in growing diagnostic capacity to reduce waiting lists benefits all patients regardless of gender.