Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust is one of three hospitals across the East of England to trial new ways of working to improve early diagnosis of cancer.
The pilot aims to provide a rapid route to diagnostic tests for patients with vague symptoms which concern their GP but do not meet cancer referral criteria.
Funded by Macmillan Cancer Support and the East of England Cancer Clinical Network (CCN), the vague symptoms trial involves GPs and consultants from Broomfield Hospital working together with a clinical nurse specialist (CNS) to identify patients for urgent referral.
Clinical nurse specialist Amy Harris has been employed to track and support patients through the process and act as a vital link across NHS services.
Clinical leads of the year-long pilot also include local Macmillan GP Dr Elizabeth Towers, Dr Malcolm Lawson, MEHT’s lung cancer lead and Dr Adela Suciu, a consultant radiologist, who will lead diagnostics.
Seven GP practices are taking part in the pilot across mid-Essex, with another 10 practices due to join the pilot soon. The team plan to roll out the pilot to all GP practices across mid Essex within a year.
A new Multidisciplinary Diagnostic Centre (MDC) has been set up within the cancer department at Broomfield Hospital to support the pilot.
Harris explained: “This is an excellent opportunity for us to proactively work with patients to identify cancer at an earlier stage and improve our early diagnosis.”
Sheona Siewertsen, Macmillan partnership manager for Essex, said: “Everyone should have the best possible chance to survive cancer. We know that being diagnosed early is of utmost importance because it leads to a lower chance of dying from the disease.
“Patients with vague symptoms may get sent back and forth between their GP and hospital for tests until a diagnosis can be made. This can feel like a long and lonely process. Critically, it can delay their diagnosis and potentially life-saving treatment.
“We need a system which is set up to ensure that people receive their diagnosis as soon as possible and this pilot will help us achieve that.
“The three multi diagnostic clinics (MDCs) involved in the pilot will work hard to develop the shortest and safest route to cancer diagnosis.”
GP Dr Liz Towers said: "By improving earlier diagnosis we will improve outcomes for our patients.
“England has poorer cancer survival rates than other similar countries – if we could match the best outcomes in Europe, 10,000 more people would survive cancer each year. The most important reason for lower survival rates in this country is later diagnosis – we hope the pilot will help improve this.”
The pilot will be nationally evaluated along with similar pilots testing new patient pathways to improve earlier diagnosis of cancer.
