Download Take home message

Take home message
The importance of early detection
• Patients who are able to walk at the time of
admission are likely to remain mobile
• Patients who are paralysed at the time of
diagnosis will remain so
• Level of mobility is linked with poor survival
time
• The earlier a patient is diagnosed & treated
the better the outcome
The importance of early detection
• Diagnosis of SCC often occurs too late
• National and local evidence consistently
shows that over half of the patients with SCC
have significantly impaired functional ability
at diagnosis
– Many will have exhibited symptoms of SCC for
some time
• The key to improving outcomes is early
detection
Getting a diagnosis
• In our study patients were asked to describe how they
came to be admitted to the cancer centre with MSCC
• 8 descriptions contained evidence of delays in MSCC
diagnosis
• Two main sources
– delays in presenting for medical advice (1)
– delays in medical diagnosis following presentation for
assessment (7)
• 6 presented to their GP with symptoms between 1 and 5 months
prior to being diagnosed with MSCC, 1 to A&E
• MRI scan was only organised once the patient was no
longer able to walk
– All 6 patients had been diagnosed with cancer for
over 1 year
Here is the message!
• The potential diagnosis of SCC should be
considered if patients with cancer develop
back pain or any of the other symptoms
associated with SCC
• Patient information is available to alert
patients to the symptoms and encourage
them to seek appropriate care
• We all need to “be bone aware”