National Pancreatic Cancer Audit Report 2024 (NPaCA)
The National Pancreatic Cancer Audit, part of the National Cancer Audit Collaborating Centre (NATCAN), has published a State of the Nation 2024 report on care received by people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in England (2020-2021) and Wales (2022).
The report contains key findings relating to diagnosis, staging and treatment planning, time from referral to start of treatment and survival outcomes. More specifically, it states that the majority of people with pancreatic cancer in England (59%) and Wales (63%) are diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic disease. Only 26% of those with metastatic disease in England and 16% in Wales received active disease-modifying treatment over the Audit period. Unfortunately, two-thirds of these patients die within three months of diagnosis.
The report also contains five recommendations to:
- Review referral pathways in centres which diagnose pancreatic cancer to ensure that all people who receive a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, including those with non-resectable disease, are discussed by a multidisciplinary team (MDT)
- Ensure that all NHS pancreatic cancer service providers review their diagnostic pathways and implement hepatopancreatobiliary (HPB) cancer pathway guidance
- Ensure a personalised approach is taken to optimise a person’s fitness, nutrition and medication to prevent deconditioning prior to starting treatment
- Review provision of clinical nurse specialists (CNS) in organisations which have a shortfall of newly diagnosed people being reviewed by a CNS, and ensure that everyone diagnosed with pancreatic cancer has access to a specialist CNS, ideally from the point of diagnosis
- Consider implementing protocols to ensure that all people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer are assessed for eligibility for pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT), and that PERT is offered as recommended in national guidance.
Read the full report: You can view the report by clicking the button below.
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