More than 800 surgeries have been postponed due to a cyberattack in London

In the week following the cyberattack on pathology provider Synnovis, more than 800 scheduled surgeries and 700 outpatient visits were postponed.

The ransomware attack on June 3, 2024 disrupted pathology services at King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS FT and South London and Maudsley NHS FT.

This will also affect Oxleas NHS FT, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, Bromley Healthcare and primary care services in south east London.

In a press release published on June 14, NHS England said 97 cancer treatments and five caesarean sections had been postponed and 18 donated organs had been diverted for use in other trusts.

NHSE added that pathology services in south-east London are operating at approximately 10% of normal capacity. Although primary care visits are scheduled, in urgent cases blood tests are the priority.

Dr Chris Streather, medical director of NHS London, said he “expected disruption to be felt for some time”.

“Today’s figures show that NHS teams are working hard to see as many patients as possible, but there is no doubt that the ransomware cyber attack on Synnovis is having a significant impact on services in south-east London, with hundreds of appointments and procedures being postponed,” he said.

In a joint statement, Professor Ian Abbs, Chief Executive of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS FT, and Professor Clive Kay, Chief Executive of King’s College Hospital NHS FT, said: “Despite the excellent efforts of our staff and support from partners across London, we have had to postpone a number of surgeries and appointments to continue caring for patients and we are working to reschedule these as soon as possible.”

St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is creating treatment options for some patients who would otherwise be admitted in hospitals affected by a cyberattack.

The trust has set up an incident response center to help manage requests and share information, while ensuring it can continue to provide services to its own patients.

Jacqueline Totterdell, group chief executive at St George’s, Epsom and St Helier Hospitals and Health Group, said: “This is where the NHS comes in on its own and it is only with the support of colleagues in other parts of the NHS who support St George’s that we are able to step up and support others.

“Following the cyberattack at St George’s Hospital, we have seen some of the sickest and most complicated patients, including patients requiring major, life-changing surgery.”

Synnovis is focusing on technical system recovery and plans to start restoring some functionalities of its IT system.

NHSE said: “In the event of a ransomware attack, there is always a risk that cybercriminals will also gain access to data.

“In addition to work to restore services, investigations are continuing to determine the possible impact to data.”