01.10.13
Emergency cancer cases must see specialists quicker
A new toolkit aims to help doctors and nurses in A&E to better manage patients with cancer. Published by the RCP, the resource aims to improve care for patients admitted to hospital as an emergency with medical problems due to cancer or cancer treatment.
A fifth of cancer-related emergencies are due to suspicion or confirmation of cancer for the first time, and non-specialists in cancer working in A&E may result in poorer care for cancer patients.
The RCP is calling for speedy access to specialists, and for trusts to set up acute oncology services. The toolkit describes the key stages of patient management and how to avoid admission in the first place.
Dr Ernie Marshall, consultant in medical oncology at the Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology (CCO) NHS Foundation Trust, and the author of the toolkit, said: “For patients with cancer admitted in an emergency, the best possible outcome is that their symptoms and underlying cancer are recognised quickly and they have access to expert doctors and nurses in that field.
“I hope that the toolkit will encourage NHS Trusts to set up acute oncology services to make that happen, and that this will lead to better treatment for cancer patients in the long term.”
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