Posted on 09/11/2011 in Medical Government/ NHS related news

Diagnosis times for bowel, oesophageal and pancreatic cancers have shown significant reductions in the latest data from the General Practice Research Database.Figures unveiled at the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Cancer Conference have shown the timeframe from a patient first visiting their GP with symptoms of the conditions to receiving treatment improved between 2001-2 and 2007-8 in the UK.Bowel cancer waiting times reduced from 96 to 75 days, oesophageal cancer waiting times were down from 59 to 48 days and pancreatic cancer delays were reduced from 63 to 52 days.Sara Hiom, director of information for Cancer Research UK, said: "It's very encouraging to see that patients are, on average, being diagnosed more quickly for some cancers, offering a better chance of successful outcome."Furthermore, screening for bowel cancer in Scotland has been found to be able to reduce the number of deaths from the disease by 25 per cent, research funded by the Scottish Government Health Department and also published at the NCRI conference revealed.

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