Awaiting decision on cancer benefit for over a month

I am a cancer patient. I submitted a claim for the once-off cancer benefit on 24 August 2023. I was then requested on 7 September 2023 to provide the histology report, which I submitted on the same day. I have followed up endlessly but to no avail. My claim has been sitting with an assessor for over a week. They have not met their 10-day turnaround time. Every time I query it, I get told it has been escalated to a Manager for investigation and then I get told i must wait another 48 hours for a response. The endless "apologies for the delay are meaningless". Besides dealing with a critical illness and everything that goes with it, I am tired of being put "on hold" for weeks. Why is this benefit offered if it takes an assessor over a week to make a decision and no feedback from a Manager as to what the delay is? I am very disappointed in the way my illness has been treated.