heartbreaking

Not a lot unless you are prepared to go private.

I'm so sorry to hear that your son is in terrible pain, this is what I did. I was in agony for months waiting to have my gallbladder removed, I went a few times to A&E where they gave me morphine. I eventually paid for a private consultation and he arranged for me to have the operation that week and said he would do it on the nhs. It was such a relief but I would have paid anything the pain was so bad.
Best wishes.

Oh goodness - I don't know where to start with this but didn't want to just read and run. It's worse isn't it seeing someone we love suffer than suffering ourselves. If I were in your position I would want to check firstly who had told your son this. Obviously he must have seen a consultant for the decision to have been made that an operation is needed so was it the consultant who told him that? Or the GP? Is it in writing? In the meantime, how on earth can they be leaving him in terrible pain? That's totally unacceptable - what is the GP doing about that? Is it preventing your son from working? Could your son contact PALs at the relevant hospital? Also, has he a good MP ( nothing to do with party but one who us good at taking up constituents concerns). Wish I had a simple answer for you but I don't think there is one - just making a fuss and a nuisance of oneself is all I can suggest.

I think Nana's suggestion is great if a private consultation can be afforded although in the circumstances I'd put it on the credit card if I had to.

Suggest see GP again and explain how bad pain is. Ask if GP can do a letter to consultant to expedite if possible.

I have on occasion paid for a private consultation and it has cost about £300. Well worth it.

Not many NHS Consultants who do private work will entertain queue jumping . He could be paying several hundred pounds to still have to wait until June . Rigby has some good suggestions , find out who said he has to wait until June for an urgent operation etc. If he has been told it is urgent then it is an emergency surely ?.

Sorry I posted it twice! It is the consultant who has told him June. Rang to say he was sorry couldn't do it sooner. The problem with paying is that we have been led to believe it would be very very expensive. They r not sure what they will find when they operate and he is likely to need more than one op. In my darker moments I wonder if they r stringing us along because they can't really do anything. Don't think so really. The whole thing has been a case of lost time and missed opportunity. It is very difficult I am just hopeful that maybe the first op can be done sooner. He works for himself so we shall have to keep helping him financially.

Morgana maybe worth finding out how much a private consultation will cost it will be worth a few hundred to get a definite diagnosis then you will know if you can afford to wait for the NHS treatment
You don't say what his problem is ....you are obviously thinking cancer by the way you say you wonder if they are stringing you along because they can't to anything .... but obviously the consultant isn't thinking that because they have very definite times over treating cancer
Why not ask for a second opinion ?
It is not in the consultants interest to just keep serious cases waiting they don't want to lose patients

morgana how hard this must be for everyone concerned. I don't understand how this fits with "the right care at the right time at the point of need for all" which is the ethos of the NHS. I also don't understand the difference between an urgent operation that is needed for someone in great pain, and an emergency operation.

No wonder people end up "working the system" in desperation.

I feel very sorry for your son who has the added pressure of not being able to take sick leave.

Don't start thinking about the worst case scenario, as bluebelle says, if cancer was suspected, treatment would be fast tracked.

Unfortunately the NHS, as we all know, is working at overload these days and if it's not life threatening then there is a long wait.

To put your mind at rest, if you could afford it, maybe a paid for second consultation "only" is the way to go?

I agree to seek a private consultation.

I asked Dr if could be referred to a local private hospital to see a consultant
I was prepared to pay for the consultation.
However I was referred under the NHS and the consultant said an operation was required.
I had the OP as a NHS patent by the same consultant.
It took 6 weeks between visiting GP and the operation.

We also payed privately for DD to see a consultant.
At the time had a new baby that she was unable to pick up due to severe carpel tunnel.
The consultant took her on as NHS patent.
She can also be referred back for future problems.

The GP can refer your son.

It could be to do with the hospital's budget. The NHS financial year starts in April and the doctors may have been told by management that they can only do emergency operations and no routine ones - perhaps if your son went into A&E rolling around in pain they would do the operation there and then, but that might be a bit risky.

Patient Choice - find out if he would get the operation sooner if he went to a different hospital. Some lists are shorter than others. Good luck.

Time between diagnosis and operation can be quite some time even for serious illnesses. It was three months from my cancer being found to having the operation and all of the preliminary investigations were done as a private patient. It cost me a great deal of money but sometimes you just have to do whatever it takes.

I think momb's is the best: get him to go back to his GP and, at the very least, nag for pain relief.

Phone the secretary and ask to be put on the cancellation list, sometimes works wonders

Thanks for all your suggestions. He has already seen the surgeon three times and had lots of tests. He has now managed to get some stronger pain killers. Let's hope they can bring forward the op. It will probably not be the final procedure. Depends what they find when they open him up. I could weep at the way the National health service is going.

Patient Choice - find out if he would get the operation sooner if he went to a different hospital. Some lists are shorter than others. Good luck.

Absolutely.
Was he offered a choice either at the GP or by the consultant?

Also ask the GP/surgeon what he/she would do in the same situation. They always seem compelled to answer truthfully.

GP/surgeon/consultant

If your son lets them know he is willing to travel further to be treated elsewhere, it might help. Last year, after waiting six months for surgery, my condition deteriorated and became urgent. I was treated six weeks later at another hospital. If I had stayed at my local one, I would have waited another 3 months or more.

If the waiting list exceeds a certain time you can ask for the operation to be carried out privately at the NHS expense.

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/25/nhs-use-private-firms-beat-winter-crisis/