ArticleBMJ (Clinical research ed.)2007
Referral patterns, cancer diagnoses, and waiting times after introduction of two week wait rule for breast cancer: prospective cohort study.
Article in BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 50 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
50 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Time to diagnosis and treatment in younger adults with colorectal cancer: A systematic review.PloS one · 2022Pooled it
- Referral interventions from primary to specialist care: a systematic review of international evidence.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2014Pooled it
- Ethnic inequalities in time to diagnosis of cancer: a systematic review.BMC family practice · 2013Pooled it
- Use of artificial intelligence to identify patients to be assessed in a breast clinic on 2-week wait: a retrospective cohort study.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2023Article
- Article
- Analysis of Time to Treatment and Survival Among Adults Younger Than 50 Years of Age With Colorectal Cancer in Canada.JAMA network open · 2023Article
- IMPACT the Brain: A Team-Based Approach to Management of Metastatic Breast Cancer With CNS Metastases.JCO oncology practice · 2023Article
- A Study Evaluating the Accuracy of Triage for Breast Referrals During the Covid-19 Pandemic in a Tertiary Hospital.Women's health reports (New Rochelle, N.Y.) · 2023Article
- An exploratory assessment of the impact of a novel risk assessment test on breast cancer clinic waiting times and workflow: a discrete event simulation model.BMC health services research · 2022Article
- A Single-Center Audit of Symptomatic Breast Cancer Patient Referrals During COVID-19 Pandemic Restrictions.Cureus · 2022Article
- Initiatives to reduce the waiting time to initiate oncological treatment: a scoping literature review.Revista panamericana de salud publica = Pan American journal of public health · 2022Article
- Diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in patients older than 65 years: analysis of 3 year Real World data of practice patterns and outcomes in England.British journal of cancer · 2022Article
- Breast cancer diagnosis and treatment wait times in specialized diagnostic units compared with usual care: a population-based study.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2020Article
- A review of the electronic two-week rule referrals for head and neck cancer to Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.British dental journal · 2019Review
- A categorisation of problems and solutions to improve patient referrals from primary to specialty care.BMC health services research · 2018Review
- Article
- Reduced Time to Breast Cancer Diagnosis with Coordination of Radiological and Clinical Care.Cureus · 2017Article
- Article
- Article
- Risk of breast cancer in symptomatic women in primary care: a case-control study using electronic records.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2014Article
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo investigate the long term impact of the two week wait rule for breast cancer on referral patterns, cancer diagnoses, and waiting times.
designProspective cohort study.
settingA specialist breast clinic in a teaching hospital in Bristol.
participantsAll patients referred to breast clinic from primary care between 1999 and 2005.
main outcome measuresNumber, route, and outcome of referrals from primary care and waiting times for urgent and routine appointments.
resultsThe annual number of referrals increased by 9% over the seven years from 3499 in 1999 to 3821 in 2005. Routine referrals decreased by 24% (from 1748 to 1331), but two week wait referrals increased by 42% (from 1751 to 2490) during this time. The percentage of patients diagnosed with cancer in the two week wait group decreased from 12.8% (224/1751) in 1999 to 7.7% (191/2490) in 2005 (P<0.001), while the number of cancers detected in the "routine" group increased from 2.5% (43/1748) to 5.3% (70/1331) (P<0.001) over the same period. About 27% (70/261) of people with cancer are currently referred in the non-urgent group. Waiting times for routine referrals have increased with time.
conclusionThe two week wait rule for breast cancer is failing patients. The number of cancers detected in the two week wait population is decreasing, and an unacceptable proportion is now being referred via the routine route. If breast cancer services are to be improved, the two week wait rule should be reviewed urgently.
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