Understanding and addressing non-completion of poo tests after people go to their GP with symptoms of bowel cancer
Lead researchers: Dr Christina Dobson and Dr Laura Woods
Location: Newcastle University
Grant award: £164,890
Dr Dobson, Dr Woods and their team are studying the barriers people may face when asked to complete a faecal immunochemical test (FIT) or "poo test" following a visit to their GP for symptoms of possible bowel cancer.
The challenge
Over half of all bowel cancer cases in the UK are diagnosed after talking to a GP about symptoms. People who visit their GP with symptoms of possible bowel cancer are often asked to complete a FIT, which looks for traces of blood in their poo. The results of this test help their GP decide if they need to be referred for further investigations and how urgently.
Some people asked by their GP to complete FIT don’t return the test. This slows their onward referrals and, if they do have cancer, it can delay their diagnosis. The earlier bowel cancer is diagnosed, the better the chance of it being cured. Because a sizable number of people each year don’t complete their FIT test, there are potentially many people being diagnosed late.
The science behind the project
The research team will first access data on symptomatic FIT from two regions, North East England and South England. They’ll see which areas have lower completion rates and if there are similarities between areas where completion is lower. For example, are rates worse in more rural areas, or more economically deprived areas?
They’ll then talk to people from areas with both low and high completion rates who have been asked to complete a FIT by their GP. They’ll talk to people who returned their test, as well as those who didn’t, to understand what helps or hinders completion. The information from these interviews will help to understand what makes it easier or more difficult for people to complete and return the tests when asked by their GP and if this is different in different locations.
Finally, the researchers will hold workshops with patients, healthcare professionals and community organisations to develop practical ideas for how to address any identified barriers and improve symptomatic FIT completion rates.
This study is building on work we previously funded – read about the pilot project.
What difference will this project make?
The findings from this project will help identify the barriers people can face when asked by their GP to complete FIT and develop ways to better support these patients to return their tests. This will help people with bowel cancer to be diagnosed more quickly and reduce the number of referrals which are delayed due to unreturned tests.
- For more information see our announcement of the grant
- Learn more about the faecal immunochemical test (FIT)
- Donate to help make our research possible
“We are thrilled to have been awarded funding from Bowel Cancer UK to deliver much-needed research into who, where, and why people may have problems completing the poo test (FIT) after they go to their doctor about possible symptoms of bowel cancer. It is important that we diagnose and treat bowel cancer as quickly as possible. This study will identify patient groups who have difficulty completing this test, and why. We will then use this information to work with patients and professionals to develop strategies to support test completion, get bowel cancer patients investigated and diagnosed as soon as possible, and increase their chances of survival.” - Dr Christina Dobson