A patient is at serious risk of dying after his cancer went undetected when the suspension of many NHS services due to the coronavirus pandemic meant he had to wait months for a scan. “I’m fighting for my life because I didn’t have a scan. I should have had the scan months earlier, but didn’t because normal NHS care was suspended because of the coronavirus. I started asking for one in early March but didn’t finally get one until last week,” Sherwin Hall told the Guardian. “I’m angry, frustrated and disappointed. And I’m devastated that I might lose my life to cancer that could have been cured if they had done what they were supposed to do [more quickly].” The scan revealed Hall had a tumour measuring 14cm in his pelvis and 30 small tumours in his lungs, which he believes developed during the time he could not get a scan. Doctors say the 27-year-old delivery driver’s cancer is particularly aggressive and fast-growing. Patient safety campaigners, health charities and medical negligence lawyers warn that growing numbers of cases like Hall’s are emerging, in which patients are at risk from life-threatening illnesses because they missed out on diagnostic tests or surgery while hospitals were concentrating on treating Covid-19 patients. Hall began seeking care at Leeds General Infirmary and the city’s St James’s hospital days before before the lockdown began on 23 March. But doctors diagnosed his pain as being caused by a condition called prostatitis, in which the prostate gland becomes inflamed. “I didn’t believe them. I did my own research and knew it was something else. I kept begging them in April and May to give me an MRI scan but I didn’t have one until last week. Both my GP and my consultant told me that I couldn’t get one because scanning services were slowed down because of the coronavirus,” said Hall, whose case was highlighted on ITV News on Tuesday evening. His pain became excruciating and at one point was so debilitating that he considered taking his own life, he said. His chances of surviving cancer remain unclear. Hall has instructed Mary Smith, a lawyer at Novum Law solicitors, to investigate his care and the possibility of him suing the NHS. He is also trying to crowdfund the cost of seeking medical treatment in the US, and is finally starting chemotherapy later this week in Leeds. More patients are coming forward whose health has suffered because they could not access NHS care, said Smith. “This is a fairly widespread problem. The concern at the moment is that for non-Covid patients, the healthcare system in parts of the UK has entered a state of paralysis and this really cannot be allowed to continue because people are suffering harm. “For patients to be denied potentially life-saving diagnostics and treatment when hospitals are empty or running far below normal capacity, and so many doctors and other healthcare workers are able and willing to treat them, is a clear breach of the government’s systemic duty under Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights to have a properly functioning healthcare framework in place to protect patients’ lives. It is indefensible.” Peter Walsh, the chief executive of the patient safety charity Action against Medical Accidents, said Hall’s case was not unique. “Sadly, there are many other patients with various potentially life-threatening conditions who have also been missing out, often with serious consequences.” He said the NHS should use its mothballed Nightingale hospitals, and also private sector hospitals, to give the growing backlog of patients the tests and treatment they needed as a matter of urgency. “Not to do so is running the risk of creating a second catastrophe affecting thousands of patients.” Other cases emerging where the pandemic prevented treatment include: A woman in her 40s whose breast cancer spread into her blood and bones when her treatment was delayed. A woman suffering severe depression when she could not have surgery to fix a badly broken arm that had not healed properly. A young woman with severe dental problems who ended up with severe depression when she could not get treated. A spokesperson for NHS England said cancer services were quickly returning to normal. “Coronavirus has turned millions of lives upside down. NHS staff have made huge efforts to ensure that patients continue to get treatment. Cancer services are largely now open, ready and able to receive all patients who need care. Anyone concerned about a possible cancer symptom should contact their GP practice and come forward for a check-up.” Dr Phil Wood, the chief medical officer at Leeds teaching hospitals NHS trust, which runs the two hospitals where Hall sought help, said: “We are extremely sorry to hear about Mr Hall’s circumstances, and we are looking into Mr Hall’s case to understand the background. “We have maintained MRI scanning for all urgent interventions, clinically prioritising those patients who have been referred by a GP with a suspected cancer diagnosis, or those presenting in our emergency department where MRI was considered appropriate. All our urgent referral pathways have remained open during the pandemic. “Throughout the Covid-19 outbreak we have continued to follow Nice guidelines by clinically triaging cases into high, intermediate and low risk of cancer.”