ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2023
Sociodemographic variations in the uptake of faecal immunochemical tests in primary care: a retrospective study.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 20 citations in OpenAlex.
- Quantitative faecal immunochemical tests to guide colorectal cancer pathway referral in primary care. A systematic review, meta-analysis and cost-effectiveness analysis.Health technology assessment (Winchester, England) · 2025Pooled it
- Faecal haemoglobin-based referral and investigation prioritisation is associated with colorectal cancer-specific survival in symptomatic patients: a retrospective observational study.British journal of cancer · 2026Observational
- Changes in PSA-Based Early Detection of Prostate Cancer over a 12-Year Period: Findings from the German KABOT Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
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- Intersectional inequalities in advanced stage diagnosis of colorectal cancer in England: a cross-sectional study of National Cancer Registry data from 2013 to 2019.Journal of epidemiology and community health · 2026Article
- Sociodemographic variation in symptomatic faecal immunochemical testing return: a population-based analysis of 125 659 patients.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
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- Article
- Barriers and facilitators to faecal immunochemical testing in symptomatic populations: A rapid systematic scoping review and gap analysis.Journal of evaluation in clinical practice · 2025Article
- Colorectal cancer risk stratification using a polygenic risk score in symptomatic primary care patients-a UK Biobank retrospective cohort study.European journal of human genetics : EJHG · 2024Article
- Article
- Effect of deprivation on faecal immunochemical test return rate.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2024Article
- Rejection of Fecal Immunochemical Tests Within the Lower Gastrointestinal Diagnostic Pathway: A Cohort Study.Journal of primary care & community healthArticle
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Authors and funding
9 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundFaecal immunochemical test (FIT) usage for symptomatic patients is increasing, but variations in use caused by sociodemographic factors are unknown. A clinical pathway for colorectal cancer (CRC) was introduced in primary care for symptomatic patients in November 2017. The pathway was commissioned to provide GPs with direct access to FITs.
aimTo identify whether sociodemographic factors affect FIT return in symptomatic patients. DESIGN AND
settingA retrospective study was undertaken in Nottingham, UK, following the introduction of FIT as triage tool in primary care. It was mandated for all colorectal referrals (except rectal bleeding or mass) to secondary care. FIT was used, alongside full blood count and ferritin, to stratify CRC risk.
methodAll referrals from November 2017 to December 2021 were retrospectively reviewed. Sociodemographic factors affecting FIT return were analysed by multivariate logistic regression.
resultsA total of 35 289 (90.7%) patients returned their index FIT, while 3631 (9.3%) did not. On multivariate analysis, males were less likely to return an FIT (odds ratio [OR] 1.11, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03 to 1.19). Patients aged ≥65 years were more likely to return an FIT (OR 0.78 for non-return, 95% CI = 0.72 to 0.83). Unreturned FIT more than doubled in the most compared with the least deprived quintile (OR 2.20, 95% CI = 1.99 to 2.43). Patients from Asian (OR 1.82, 95% CI = 1.58 to 2.10), Black (OR 1.21, 95% CI = 0.98 to 1.49), and mixed or other ethnic groups (OR 1.29, 95% CI = 1.05 to 1.59) were more likely to not return an FIT compared with patients from a White ethnic group. A total of 599 (1.5%) CRCs were detected; 561 in those who returned a first FIT request.
conclusionFIT return in those suspected of having CRC varied by sex, age, ethnic group, and socioeconomic deprivation. Strategies to mitigate effects on FIT return and CRC detection should be considered as FIT usage expands.
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