OnMedica – News – General Practitioners Need Better Access to Testing to Improve Cancer Diagnosis

Thousands of people die every year of cancer in England because of a late diagnosis

Thousands of cancer patients die each year unnecessarily because the NHS in England has not improved enough, the Health Foundation warned this morning. He called for radical improvements to reduce the gap in cancer survival between England and comparable countries, and increased support for general practitioners to direct patients to an investigation they suspect a cancer. GP leaders responded that to further improve the timely diagnosis of cancer, they needed better access to testing and more time with patients.

In the latest report from the independent health and health care organization UnfinishedIn collaboration with Sir Mike Richards, former National Cancer Director, early diagnosis and investment in diagnosis must be a priority. He revealed that significant improvements have been made in mortality, survival rates and patient experience in cancer treatment over the last 20 years in England; more care is provided by multidisciplinary teams; and cancer treatment technologies and cancer data / information have improved significantly. But despite the declared ambitions of successive cancer control strategies to be the best in Europe and around the world, the report revealed that the gap between survival rates had not been bridged.

The report's authors pointed out that while early diagnosis and treatment are essential for improving cancer survival – for example, the five-year survival of bowel cancer is greater than 90% if it is detected early, but less than 10% if diagnosed late – the proportion diagnosed with early cancer remained almost static between 2015 and 2017.

They noted, "Bridging the gap will require radical improvements in early diagnosis and cancer detection. The NHS will have to invest significantly in strengthening diagnostic equipment and manpower. … It is also essential that primary care has the resources to meet the demand for appointments.

"Research has shown that patients in England are more reluctant to bother their GP than people living in other countries. In 2017, Cancer Research UK found that 22% of respondents feared losing their work time and 45% said they had difficulty making appointments. "

The Health Foundation has called for greater funding and support for GPs to allow for the investigation of patients with symptoms indicating a cancer risk greater than or equal to 3%, as recommended by NICE guidelines; as well as additional staff and equipment in hospitals to meet the demand for referrals. "In the past, commissioners in a hurry to limit referrals and limited hospital capacity to cope with the demand for diagnostic tests such as endoscopy" have aroused resistance from general commissioners.

The Royal College of General Practitioners pointed out that general practitioners were in a difficult position in referrals and were strongly criticized for referring too many patients to specialized care or too few. However, 75% of cancer patients are referred after only one or two consultations and in the last five years the proportion of cancers diagnosed in emergency has gone from 25% to 20%. and a higher proportion of patients are also diagnosed at an early stage.

Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, president of a university, said this morning: "Access to adequate diagnostic tests is a key factor in being able to diagnose patients quickly – and access GPs." to appropriate diagnostic tests is one of the lowest in Europe.

She added, "We desperately need GPs and our teams to have better access to high quality diagnostic tools in the community and the proper training to use them."