Amy Gray, who lost her mother to a rare type of bladder cancer said missed targets are no surprise.
Jayne, 64, a headteacher from East Leicestershire, was first diagnosed in 2005.
She was receiving treatment during the pandemic, but Amy said blaming staff and equipment shortages on Covid was an “easy get-out”.
Amy, 38, said: “For my mum and I, the issues of understaffing and lack of equipment were confounded by the pandemic but not caused by it – they’re symptoms of years of chronic underfunding and under-resourcing.”
Three years after her mother’s death, Amy said “I feel exceptionally frustrated waiting times remain an issue. I remember the anxiety caused by the long and uncomfortable two-hour waits in corridors for planned chemotherapy treatments, the repeated lack of beds in oncology when mum needed to be admitted, and the last-minute delays to getting scans. All these issues were a source of huge stress to us as a family.
“Patients deserve the best possible care, and it’s not acceptable when hospitals are squeezed to the point they are no longer able to provide this. I certainly wanted better for my mum.
“Should I ever require long-term hospital treatment, I want better for myself and everyone else that is already going through one of the hardest, most scary times of their life.”
Amy, who got married in October, added: “I want to be inspired by my political leaders and confident they have the highest-level aspirations when it comes to our nation’s healthcare.
“Rhetoric is not enough – there needs to be meaningful action.
“I am very glad so many people are diagnosed at an earlier stage of cancer. Early diagnosis is absolutely vital for improving cancer survival. In fact, when my mum was first diagnosed in 2005, it was the initial speed of response and extremely rapid oncological interventions that meant that she was still with us up until 2021. I will always be grateful for that. My only wish is that this is always the case.”