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‘Two Week Wait Rule’ – Not Working With Breast Cancer Patients
July 14, 2007 at 11:46 AM
Cancer News
In 1998 the Department of Health brought in the ‘2 week wait rule’ which stipulated that by April 1999 all patients with suspected breast cancer should be seen by a specialist within two weeks of referral by a GP.
Many studies have questioned the validity of the 2 week wait rule, but this is the first to assess the long term impact. Dr Shelley Potter and her colleagues gathered data on the number, route and outcome of Primary Care referrals to the Frenchay Brest Care Centre in Bristol between 1999 and 2005.
There were 24,999 referrals to the centre during this period, with GPs classifying each patient as being either ‘urgent’ according to 2 week wait criteria or ‘routine’. Between 1999 and 2005 the number of annual referrals to the centre increased by 9%.
Routine referrals decreased by 24% but 2-week wait referrals increased by 42%. Despite the changes in referral patterns the total number of cancers remained constant over the 7 year period.
Yet the researchers found the percentage of patients diagnosed with cancer in the 2-week wait group decreased from 12.8% to 7.7% whilst the number of cancers detected in the ‘routine’ group increased from 2.5% to 5.3% over the same time period.
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More News on: Women and Cancer, Breast Biopsy, Pagets disease of the breast, Mastitis, Cancer and Homeopathy, Breast Cancer Facts, Cancer Facts, Cancer, Breasts - Structures and Types, Breast Lumps
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