Two HPV tests better than one for cervical screening

Source: Cancer Research UK

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Date of publication: August 2011

Publication type: Press release

In a nutshell: A Swedish study showed that doing the Human papillomavirus (HPV) test twice with a short interval in between would reduce the number of women having unnecessary treatment. The study also suggested that home testing could increase the number of women screened.

Length of publication: Webpage

Primary care endorsement letter and a patient leaflet to improve participation in colorectal cancer screening: results of a factorial randomised trial

Source: British Journal of Cancer 105, 475-480, doi:10.1038/bjc.2011.255

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Date of publication: August 2011

Publication type: Journal article

In a nutshell: Randomised controlled trial to investigate whether a letter of endorsement from the GP and a more explicit leaflet explaining how to complete faecal occult blood test (FOBT) included in the screening invitation increased uptake. Uptake was found to increase by approximately 6%.

Length of publication: 5 pages

Some important notes: Please contact your local NHS Library for the full text of the article. Follow this link to find your local NHS Library.

Ethnic disparities in knowledge of cancer screening programmes in the UK

Source: Journal of Medical Screening
Volume 7 (3) pp. 125-131

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Date of publication: 2010

Publication type: Journal Article

In a nutshell: Examines awareness of the three National Cancer Screening Programmes (breast, cervical, bowel) among white and ethnic minority groups in the UK. Ethnic disparities in awarenes persisted after controlling for age, gender and occupational group. In both groups, knowledge of breast and cervical screening was lower among men and more socioeconomically deprived groups. Awareness of the new bowel cancer screening programme was less than 30% in both white and ethnic minority groups.

Length of publication: 6p

Some important notes: You will need an NHS Athens account to access the full text of this article.

Government campaign highlights signs of bowel cancer

Source: Cancer Research UK

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Date of publication: February 2011

Publication type: News item

In a nutshell: The Department of Health has launched a new campaign- ‘Be Clear on Cancer’. Pilot campaigns costing £1.75 million will run for seven weeks in the east and south-west of England, and be rolled out nationwide if successful. The adverts will appear on regional TV and radio and in newspapers, and feature GPs encouraging patients to tell them about any changes in their bowel movements or abnormal bleeding, as these may be early signs of bowel cancer.

Length of publication: Webpage

Government announces new ‘Flexi-scope’ bowel screening test

Source: Cancer Research UK

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Date of publication: October, 2010

Publication type: News item

In a nutshell: A 16-year clinical trial, co-funded by Cancer Research UK and published in the Lancet medical journal, revealed that 10,000 people each year will avoid bowel cancer as a result of including the Flexi-scope test into the national bowel screening programme. 

The government has confirmed that a £60 million investment will enable the test to be rolled out nationwide over the next four years. 

Length of publication: 1 webpage

Some important notes: A summary of the original Lancet article can be found by clicking here. The full text of the original article can be accessed clicking here  (This article is available in full text to all NHS Staff using Athens, for more information about accessing full text follow this link to find your local NHS Library)

New state of the art breast screening service for Oldham

Source: NHS Oldham

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Date of publication: August, 2010

Publication type: News Item

In a nutshell: A brand new state of the art breast screening service is now available at the Oldham Integrated Care Centre.

Length of publication: 2 pages

Preferences for colorectal cancer screening strategies: a discrete choice experiment

Source: British Journal of Cancer, 2010, 102 p. 972–980

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Date of publication: March, 2010

Publication type: Journal Article

In a nutshell: Guidelines underline the role of individual preferences in the selection of a screening test, as insufficient evidence is available to recommend one screening test over another. We conducted a study to determine the preferences of individuals and to predict uptake for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programmes using various screening tests.

Length of publication: 8 pages

Some important notes: Please contact your local NHS Library for the full text of the article. Follow this link to find your local NHS Library. http://www.hlisd.org/

Debate over role of HPV test in cervical screening

Source: Cancer Research UK

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Date of publication: March, 2010

Publication type: News Item

In a nutshell: Testing for the human papillomavirus (HPV) – the major cause of cervical cancer – may not help to identify women who are at risk of the disease, a new UK study suggests. The result comes despite previous studies that suggested that HPV testing could be helpful in predicting women’s risk of developing pre-cancerous changes or cervical cancer.

Length of publication: 1 web page

Comparison of breast and bowel cancer screening uptake patterns in a common cohort of South Asian women in England

Source: BioMed Central, 2010, 10 (103)

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Date of publication: April 2010

Publication type: Journal Article

In a nutshell: Inequalities in uptake of cancer screening by ethnic minority populations are well documented in a number of international studies. However, most studies to date have explored screening uptake for a single cancer only. This paper compares breast and bowel cancer screening uptake for a cohort of South Asian women invited to undertake both, and similarly investigates these women’s breats cancer screening behaviour over a period of fifteen years.

Length of publication: 1 web page

Experts call for new national screening programme for colorectal cancer

Source: British Medical Journal, 2010, 340:c2344

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Date of publication: April 2010

Publication type: Journal Article

In a nutshell: Experts on cancer have called for a new national screening programme for colorectal cancer, with all 55 year olds in the United Kingdom to undergo a one-off 5 minute sigmoidoscopy examination.

Length of publication: 1 web page

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