Primary care cancer toolkit
This toolkit provides a collection of key resources about cancer prevention, diagnosis and care relevant for the primary care setting.
Resources for those Commissioning or Planning Cancer Services
Many GPs will also be involved through clinical commissioning groups and other organisations in commissioning and/or planning cancer services.
This area of the toolkit contains resources relating to this. Commissioners and planners should consider the benefits of preventative interventions as well as effective pathways for diagnosis and management.
Policy Directions
England
- Achieving World Class Cancer Outcomes: A Strategy for England 2015-2020 – Makes recommendations for how to improve cancer outcomes in England, and includes recommendations for and relevant to primary care
- NHS England: Cancer Webpages – NHS England set up the independent Cancer Taskforce to help realise the vision of the NHS 5-Year Forward View, the document can be found here as well as NHS England’s other cancer related work.
Scotland
- Beating Cancer: Ambition and Action – The new Scottish cancer strategy sets out a 5-10 year plan to tackle cancer by improving prevention, detection, diagnosis and treatment and after care for those affected.
Wales
- Cancer Services in Wales – Makes recommendations for how to improve cancer outcomes in Wales, and includes recommendations for, and relevant to, primary care.
Service Capacity
Cancer Research UK have undertaken several pieces of work in recent years around service capacity in secondary care, as well as cost benefits of earlier diagnosis of cancer. Reports from these can be found on their website.
- Horizon Scanning: An evaluation of Imaging Capacity across the NHS in England
- Scoping the Future: An Evaluation of Endoscopy Capacity across the NHS in England
Where to Find Support for Improvement Activity
There are various sources of help and support for practices or CCGs in working to improve cancer care.
RCGP CIRC Clinical Priority Programme
- Early Diagnosis of Cancer Significant Event Analysis Toolkit – Aims to support CCGs and GP practices find emerging themes, and use local intelligence to manage issues.
- This toolkit is just one of the tools to come out of the RCGP clinical priorities programme. For further information visit the CIRC Website
Cancer Research UK Health Professional Facilitator Programme
This enables facilitators to work in partnership with NHS Commissioners, GP Cancer Leads, Public Health and other local bodies to support in the prevention, diagnosis and management of cancer.
Cancer Research UK Strategic GP Leads
- Lead GPs working with Strategic Clinical Networks and Cancer Alliances in England. Contact primarycare@cancer.org.uk for further details.
- Macmillan GPs are practising GPs who devote an average of a day per week to work with Macmillan to make a recognisable improvement in cancer care across the UK
Cascade
- Cancer Research UK and RCGP Workshops for Cancer Leads. – Working in the delivery and commissioning/planning of primary care services to facilitate sharing of national policy directions and to encourage sharing of ideas for improvement.
Quality Improvement
- RCGP’s GP Quality Improvement Guide which can be found on RCGP’s QI Resource Page
- NHS England: Improving Quality Website, Team and Resources – Includes specific resources for primary care
- NHS Scotland’s Quality Improvement
- STP Aide Memoire – This PDF includes the NHS IMAS tools and resources on demand and capacity planning
- RCGP: QI Ready Platform – Join to access shared learning networks to assist you in applying practical QI methodologies to better treat this clinical area
Data to Inform Improvement Activity
- Public Health England: NHS England Cancer Dashboard
- National Cancer Patient Experience Survey
- Cancer Research UK: The Cancer Awareness Measures (CAM)
RCGP members' forum