Vital Red Flag Symptoms Not Recognised in Bowel Cancer Emergency Patients

Posted 04/10/2016

A study by University College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has revealed that 1 in 5 people diagnosed with bowel cancer following an emergency had ‘red flag’ symptoms that could have enabled a diagnosis to have been made earlier. These ‘red flag’ symptoms are ones which may indicate a more serious underlying issue that requires diagnosis and treatment as early as possible.

The impact of a delay in diagnosis can be significant. Cristina Renzi, a University College London Lead Researcher, explained that those who received a cancer diagnosis following an emergency presentation did not fare as well as those patients diagnosed earlier by their GP.

The study, which focuses on diagnoses made between 2005-2006, identified that a total of 35% of colon cancers and 15% of rectal cancers were diagnosed following an emergency presentation. Of course not all of these patients would have visited their GP or have been symptomatic prior to their diagnosis but the study believes that 17.5% of colon cancer and 23% of rectal cancer patients had red flag symptoms prior to diagnosis. A staggering 16% of emergency diagnosis patients had visited their GP with relevant symptoms three or more times.

Diagnosis in an emergency presentation can be more difficult as the symptoms are less often typical of bowel cancer. Because of this, the study has recommended that specialist trained nurses should be available to support GPs and to act as an additional safety net. They also recommended that GPs should have easier access to specialist advice in order to discuss queries or concerns.

Lauren Van Buren, a member of the Ashtons clinical negligence team, says: “Yet again we are receiving recommendations following in depth studies that make sense. Unfortunately, the cuts we are seeing from all angles to the NHS are likely to render such implementations unsustainable. In August this year Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs) brought to the attention of the public revealed plans to put some GP surgeries on review due to a lack of funding. It is vital that cuts are fought in order to provide the resources for such essential training and that both patients and GPs are taught to recognise red flag symptoms. There is support for GPs from the General Practitioners Committee (GPC) who have insisted that the Clinical Commissioning Groups must not allow overspending to impact resources available to GPs. The likely result would be a larger number of emergency diagnoses and more patients potentially facing a more difficult road to recovery.”