More than 300,000 new cases of cancer were diagnosed in the UK in 2013, and roughly half of all people in the UK born after 1960 will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime.
Cancer endurance and survival in England is lesser than the European average, which is moderately because patients in the country are being diagnosed at a later stage. However, there are signs of progress
According to data from the National Cancer Intelligence Network, in 2006 almost 25 percent of cancers, one in four, were diagnosed as an emergency, but in 2013 this figure had fallen to 20 percent, or one in five.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published a new quality standard method just to accelerate cancer diagnosis and save thousands of lives every year.
It is estimated that in England only, 10,000 lives could be saved every year through earlier finding of the disease and the use of more suitable surgery as prime treatment.
The procedure proposes that GPs have straight access to tests to speed up the process such as:
- Endoscopy
- Ultrasound
- MRI
- X-ray
- CT for people with suspected cancer
The solution to secure early diagnosis and reducing waste of resources is improving attendance rates for cancer service referrals, and so the Institute suggests giving patients written information to support them to attend.
The quality standard, which follows updated direction on the detection and recommendation of suspected cancer published last year, sets out clear tables linking signs and symptoms to possible cancers and comprising simple suggestions about which tests to perform and the type of referral to specialist services that should be made.
According to Professor Gillian Leng, deputy chief executive of NICE, “When we published our updated suspected cancer guidance last year we said the best way to successfully treat cancer was to make an early diagnosis,”
Date: 4th July 2016
http://www.pharmatimes.com/news/nice_quality_standard_to_boost_earlier_cancer_diagnosis_1057206