Brighton has the worst record in the country for ensuring women with suspected breast cancer see specialists quickly.

A Government guideline states patients with possible breast cancer should be seen within two weeks. But the town's health trust met this target in only 35 per cent of cases.

The figures, which relate to the first three months of this financial year, show Brighton Health Care NHS Trust has come in at the very bottom of the Department of Health's table.

The Government has been so shocked by its record officials are now working with it to help move women through more quickly.

Health managers say the figure has been dramatically improved in recent weeks and have drafted an action plan to bring about change.

Ian Keeber, a spokesman for Brighton Health Care, said the hospital's efforts to see women within two weeks had been hampered by staff shortages.

He said: "We are making huge progress. But obviously 35 per cent is completely unacceptable. We want to work to vastly improve that."

Health Secretary Alan Milburn has ordered everyone with suspected breast cancer should be seen by a specialist within 14 days of an urgent GP referral.

Current figures show the average number of patients seen within the two weeks was 93 per cent in the South-East and 96 per cent nationally.

Deborah Tomalin, cancer services development manager with East Sussex, Brighton and Hove Health Authority, said during July, the first month after these latest figures were collated, the trust saw 82 per cent of women within two weeks. In August, the figure rose to 87 per cent.

She said the action plan would involve the trust, health authority and GPs and would include looking at how specialist clinics were organised and whether some women were referred inappropriately.

She added: "We have confidence in this action plan. It is not just up to the trust to solve this alone."

Trusts were supposed to start meeting the guideline in April 1999. Elsewhere in East Sussex other trusts also had poor records for the start of this financial year. Eastbourne Hospitals NHS Trust achieved the two-week target in 82 per cent of cases.

But in West Sussex, Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust had a 100 per cent record.