Suspected cancer sufferers in UK are avoiding hospitals, minister says

The number of British people arriving at the health service with suspected cases of cancer has come to a "juddering halt" during the coronavirus lockdown, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Friday.

Hancock said there had been a drop off in "first presentations" which was a big concern in terms of the broader impact of the pandemic.

"Far, far fewer people are coming forward," he told the British parliament's Health and Social Care Committee. "We'd spent an awful lot of time ... driving up those coming forward for cancer treatment. And that has been brought to a juddering halt by this virus."