Migrants to get faster X-ray scans than NHS cancer patients

Migrants claiming to be children are set to get faster X-ray and MRI scans than cancer patients amid record NHS waiting times.

Home Office (HO) officials are set to green light a new set of plans to use "scientific method of age assessment" to discover people's true ages, Immigration minister Robert Jenrick has said.

MRI scans are expensive procedures typically used to check if a tumour is cancerous but can also help determine an adolescent's age.

Private healthcare providers offer same day scans while urgent NHS referrals - such as for suspected cancers - take up to two weeks for the same procedure.

Doctors have slammed the plans as "unethical", saying NHS waiting lists for the radiology services are "already far too long" but a MP warned too many adult male migrants were masquerading as children.

Dr Jan Wise, chair of British Medical Association’s medical ethics committee, said: “We are deeply concerned about these age check proposals from the Government. The use of ionising radiation which could potentially cause harm to patients has not been ruled out and on that basis alone we would be against requiring doctors to participate. Quite apart from those harms, such age checks are likely to exacerbate the trauma of already vulnerable children.

"Requiring doctors to be agents of border control is unethical; doing so when their workloads are already far too heavy, and NHS waiting lists for radiology services already far too long, is terrible for NHS patients too.”

But Natalie Elphicke, MP for Dover which bears the brunt of processing migrants who cross the English Channel on small boats, said: “Too often migrants who are grown men masquerade as children. This is dangerous and wrong and these people must be weeded out as soon as possible. This yet again underlines the urgent need to bring the small boats crisis to an end.”

John O'Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, added: "It's important that authorities aren't hoodwinked by bogus claims so making checks to prove age can help save taxpayers' money down the track. That said, if there is spare MRI capacity then those on NHS waiting lists might wonder why they aren't being seen sooner. Managers have to sweat assets and ensure that taxpayers are protected, and patients seen in a timely fashion."

The NHS constitution says the wait for diagnostic tests such as MRI should be less than six weeks.

But more than 25,000 patients were waiting for at least three months for one by the end of October, according to NHS England.

Doctors and radiographers have warned they are working at “over capacity” in a "reckless" attempt to reduce waiting times.

The HO did not comment on the possibility that local authorities could shoulder any of the burden of the MRI scans.

But a departmental source did not rule out "commercial suppliers" existing contracts with the NHS, raising fears migrant referrals could indirectly worsen waiting times.

A NHS paediatric doctor, who said a private MRI scan could cost as much as £800, said: "Children with suspected cancer or brain tumour get a MRI scan as soon as possible but at least within two weeks. For non-urgent diagnoses it can be a bit longer."

The doctor also warned the taxpayer could be expected to shell out more for the migrant MRI scans due to the complexity of using them to determine age precisely.

"A 17-year-old would most likely be treated as an adult however if there were specific things that were being looked for they could seek more experienced radiologists," she said.

"The actual process of taking the scans won't be an issue: it'll be getting someone experienced to report it and might even involve several radiologists and second opinions."

A HO spokesman said: "Through our Nationality and Borders Act, we will introduce new scientific methods to assess the age of asylum seekers and resolve age disputes.

“This will bring a more consistent and robust approach to age assessments and help prevent asylum-seeking adults from claiming to be children, or children being wrongly treated as adults - in turn helping prevent safeguarding risks and stopping abuse of the system.

“We welcome the report from the Age Estimation Science Advisory Committee and will now consider the recommendations – further details will be set out in due course.”

Kama Petruczenko, Senior Policy Analyst at the Refugee Council, added: “These assessments are not a stand-alone solution and carry medical and ethical risks, with the government's own scientific advisors saying they should not be widely used.

"If they are carried out, it should be done with extreme caution alongside other methods. The Government should not be using them against the scientific advice on a large scale.”

A Kent County Council spokesperson said: “We understand the Home Office is considering the recommendations and will outline further steps in due course. At this stage it would be inappropriate to pre-empt the process while these details are being considered.”