Three quarters of patients with cancer are referred within one
month, reveals RCGP Report
25/11/11
Published by the RCGP’s Clinical Innovation
and Research Centre (CIRC), the report – the first of its kind –
describes the findings of the National Audit of Cancer Diagnosis in
Primary Care, undertaken in 2009/2010 as part of the National
Awareness and Early Diagnosis Initiative.
To date, it is the largest and most comprehensive study of the
primary care pathway to cancer diagnosis, covering one in seven
practices in England.
The audit examined intervals in the diagnostic pathway, looking
at the primary care interval – defined as the time between first
presentation and date of referral, and the referral interval – the
period between referral and the date the patient first attended
secondary care.
The report found that:
- Three quarters (73.2 per cent) of patients visiting their GP
were referred to a specialist after only one or two
consultations.
- Nearly 60 per cent of all patients referred (57.1 per
cent) attended secondary care within two weeks.
The report also looked at use of investigations, and found that
some cancer patients, including those with brain, ovary, pancreas,
liver and kidney cancer, were more likely to have benefited from
better Primary Care access to diagnostics including chest X-rays,
non-obstetric ultrasounds, GI endoscopies and brain MRIs. Overall,
rapid access to investigations would have altered the GP’s
management of the patient in 6 per cent of cases.
Professor Greg Rubin, Professor of General Practice and Primary
Care at Durham University and RCGP Project Lead for the Audit,
said:
“This report provides the first detailed analysis of how GPs
diagnose cancer. The good news is that many patients are identified
promptly as needing specialist assessment, but we could do better
and improved access to cancer tests would help in this.”
RCGP Chair Dr Clare Gerada said:
“This report shows that in General Practice we do a very good job
of identifying our patients who have cancer, and in referring them
quickly for specialist treatment.
“While there are groups of patients where we do, for various
reasons, have difficulty in making a rapid diagnosis, we must be
proud that the majority are being identified and put into secondary
care quickly. At the same time, we must always be looking at how we
can improve.
“The report confirms that the foundations that will enable us to
continue to provide a quality service are already in place, and
that they are the attributes of quality General Practice –
continuity of care; patient centeredness and shared decision
making; clinical acumen and sound diagnostic skills.”
Chris Carrigan, Head of the National Cancer Intelligence Network
(NCIN), said:
“Collecting and evaluating data on how quickly cancer patients are
sent for referral by their GP is crucial to equip us with the
knowledge to improve early detection of the disease. This study
allowed us to analyse data from the time a patient first visits the
GP with symptoms to follow up tests at the hospital. But
understanding and improving diagnosis, treatment and outcomes for
patients is complex. These data give us one piece of a jigsaw
puzzle but we need to continue to hunt for these pieces of data so
that we can build a clear picture of where delays could be
occurring. Early detection really is the key to improving survival
rates in the country in order to bring England’s cancer survival in
line with the best in Europe.”
Read the report
National
Audit of Cancer Diagnosis in Primary Care: full report
National Audit of
Cancer Diagnosis in Primary Care: presentation 
ENDS
Further information
RCGP Press office – 020 3188 7574/7575/7576/7569
Out of hours: 0203 188 7659
press@rcgp.org.uk
Notes for editors
Data were collected on 18,879 patients by 1170 practices in 20
cancer networks.
The proportion of patients referred within 31 days was
calculated by redistributing those for whom the primary care
interval was not known even across the 6 time periods.
The Royal College of General Practitioners is a network of more
than 44,000 family doctors working to improve care for patients. We
work to encourage and maintain the highest standards of general
medical practice and act as the voice of GPs on education,
training, research and clinical standards.