THE NHS is covering up long waits for heart surgery, an angry husband claimed last night.

While officials insist virtually no one in the region is waiting longer than six months, many heart patients are waiting much longer, according to the 70-year-old from Darlington.

Official figures say the man's 52-year-old wife has only been waiting for a few months - but she was told she needed surgery last November.

The case of the ex-nurse has highlighted the hidden waiting list to get on to the waiting list for heart surgery.

The Darlington man, who has asked not to be named, said the official figures were "a farce".

The problem lies in how the NHS calculates waiting lists for heart surgery, and hospital bosses argue patients can only be placed on an official list after they are seen by a surgeon.

But many spend months waiting to see a cardiologist, months waiting to have an angiogram or ECG, and months to get the results before seeing the surgeon.

Official waiting lists at the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough show only six out of 140 patients needing heart bypass surgery have been waiting more than six months.

"My wife saw a cardiologist at James Cook last November and he told her that without an operation she would be dead in two years," said the man.

"She has been provisionally booked in to have her operation on June 19. By that time she will have been waiting about eight months for this operation."

Eve Knight, of the British Cardiac Patients' Association, said: "Waiting times are ridiculous. We need to speed heart surgery up. It is happening, not as quickly as we would like, but things are improving."

Dr Jim Hall, chief of service for the cardiothoracic division at the James Cook, said: "There are national rules which say it is at the point the surgeon and the patient agree the best course of action is an operation, and the patient gives their consent, that the waiting time starts.

"What is more important is people see real improvements in waiting times at all stages of the process.

"With the expansion in heart services on Teesside, we are seeing the improvements starting to make a difference.

"Our heart unit is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. Before it was set up, there were no heart surgery facilities in this area. Patients would be on medication and some may have got on a list for surgery at Newcastle or Leeds.

"Our ambition is to ensure no one has to wait more than three months from when they and their heart surgeon agree the operation needs to go ahead."

Four years ago, The Northern Echo launched the A Chance To Live Campaign to improve heart care, which highlighted the long waits facing many patients.