Outpatient secondary care pathways for head and neck cancer referral result in patient delays for cancer treatment.
Ann R Coll Surg Engl
; 105(4): 352-356, 2023 Apr.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36260287
INTRODUCTION: The majority of head and neck cancer referrals are received through primary care. A proportion of cancer referrals are received through secondary care specialties. Local delivery plan (LDP) targets in Scotland for cancer investigation are set at 31 days for diagnosis and 62 days to start treatment. The aim was to audit referrals made through non-primary care pathways compared with the standard primary care pathways against LDP targets. METHODS: New head and neck cancer patients between 1 January 2014 and 1 January 2019 were included. Pathway points were recorded between referral to outpatient clinic, time to multidisciplinary team discussion (MDT) and finally MDT to treatment. RESULTS: 1,276 new patient referrals were received over a 5-year period. Of these, 136 (10%) were referred via non-primary care pathways. The mean time for urgent suspicion of cancer (USoC) referrals to start treatment was 77 days (15 days over target) and for outpatient secondary care referrals was 102 days (40 days over target) (p<0.05). When treatment intent was considered, 841/1,131 (75%) of patients referred via primary care were treated curatively compared with 49/99 (49%) (p<0.05) of patients referred through the secondary outpatient pathway. CONCLUSION: Patients with head and neck cancer referred from other outpatient specialties face delays commencing cancer treatment and are also associated with a greater likelihood of being treated with palliative intent.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Pacientes Ambulatorios
/
Neoplasias de Cabeza y Cuello
Tipo de estudio:
Guideline
Límite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Ann R Coll Surg Engl
Año:
2023
Tipo del documento:
Article
Pais de publicación:
Reino Unido