In primary care the key areas of concern for both doctor and patients are delay in diagnosing cancer, getting high risk patients referred first, and keeping investigation to a minimum. There have been few valid studies to assist decision-making in primary care, either to get a patient referred quickly or to assist in making sure an anxious patient is effectively reassured. The CANDID study aims to develop ways of predicting who is more at risk of getting lung or bowel cancer. It hopes to improve early detection by identifying common early symptoms or combinations of symptoms and assist early referral, saving lives and providing long-term savings to the NHS.
In Oxfordhsire, 222 patients have been recruited at the Eynsham Medical Centre making them the biggest recruiters in the county to date. Study teams across the country have recruited over 8,200 patients. Read the NIHR Clinical Research Network: Thames Valley and South Midlands press release.