Several health boards hit the target for breast cancer

Just over 87% of patients are being treated within 62 days of urgent referral, said official figures.

Health authorities will be required to treat 95% of patients within the timescale by the end of the year.

Although that target, set in 2005, has not been reached, Ms Sturgeon said they were on track to meet it.

The latest figures, for the three months to June, show 87.3% of patients were treated within the target time - an increase of 2.8% on the previous quarter and by 8.8% on a year ago.

We will not be complacent Nicola Sturgeon Health secretary

Ms Sturgeon said: "The progress to the end of June is encouraging, and I know that from my conversations with board management over the past few months, from the weekly progress reports I asked for from boards, and from the information our cancer performance support team provide, that they appear to be making progress towards our end of year target.

"But we will not be complacent," added the health secretary. "Cancer patients and their families would expect nothing less."

The best-performing health board area, according to the figures, was the Highland part of the former Argyll and Clyde Board, where there was 100% compliance with the 62-day target.

The worst-performing was Western Isles, at 73.3%.

Across Scotland, the proportion of breast cancer patients treated within 62 days was more than 97%, and eight health boards reported 100% compliance.

Head and neck cancer patients waited the longest, with 77.4% treated within 62 days, while the figure fell to 54.5% in Grampian and 50% in Ayrshire and Arran.