‘One-stop shops’ for cancer diagnoses are being trialled by the UK's National Health Service (NHS), says a Daily Mail report. In a pilot scheme, GPs are able to refer patients suffering from 'vague' cancer symptoms, such as unexplained weight loss and fatigue, to assessment centres where they can undergo multiple tests for different forms of the disease.
The report quotes NHS England as saying that the initiative aims to ensure a quick diagnosis in those not showing 'alarm' signals for a specific form of cancer. NHS England is co-ordinating the scheme alongside Cancer Research UK and Macmillan Cancer Support.
Certain patients are expected to be able to receive a diagnosis, or the all clear, on the day of testing, while others may require further examinations but should still have their results within two weeks.”
Cally Palmer, national director for cancer at NHS England, said: 'Early diagnosis is crucial to saving lives and providing peace of mind for patients, which is why we are driving forward plans to revolutionise our approach to cancer in this country. These new one-stop shops represent a real step change in the way people with unclear symptoms are identified, diagnosed and treated.”
Sara Hiom, director of early diagnosis at Cancer Research UK, said: “We're confident these pilot centres will give us a much better understanding of what's needed to speed up the diagnosis and treatment of people with less obvious symptoms, improve their experience of care and, ultimately, survival.”
Pilot scheme are being carried out at 10 UK centres, the report says. These are made up of: North Middlesex University Hospital, University College London Hospital, Southend University Hospital, Queen's Hospital, Royal Free Hospital, St James's University Hospital, Airedale General Hospital, University Hospital South Manchester, Royal Oldham Hospital and Churchill Hospital.
[link url="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-5570119/One-stop-shops-cancer-diagnoses-trialled-NHS.html"]Daily Mail report[/link]