Investigation of the clinical practice gaps within the UK Healthcare system

Project title: Investigation of the clinical practice gaps within the UK Healthcare system

The aim of this project is to investigate the potential points of the cancer patient pathway that could be improved with respect to patients getting personalised drug treatments. We have carried out a previous study in the US using Medicare and commercial insurance data within cancer patient cohorts. Our previous study found that there are several points of the patient pathway where patients are missed or ‘leaked’. If we are able to identify these key points of the pathway then we can focus on strategies to improve those areas ensuring that more patients get a personalised approach to their treatment which will improve overall response.

Within our study we aim to investigate cancer patients treatment journeys and if they can be improved. The improvement would be for the patient in terms of receiving the right test and treatment at the right time, leading to better outcomes for the patient and their disease. It would also be of benefit to the NHS as patients could have improved responses and outcomes, resulting in less interventions. Our previous work in the US has identified a number of areas for improvement for cancer patients. We know that even improving a few key areas will have a positive impact not only on the patient but also on the healthcare system. Improving key points of the cancer patient pathway will result in patients who have improved outcomes which results on less pressure on the healthcare system as they are not having to manage as many very sick patients.

Health Research Classification System (HRCS) category: Cancer and neoplasms

Current project status: Live – data in use

Multiple-SDE project: No

Lead SDE: N/A

Participating SDEs/organisations: TVS SDE