| Reference | FOI 2024-414 |
|---|---|
| Description | Pathway breast cancer |
| Date Requested | 25/09/24 |
| Date Replied | 25/11/24 |
| Category | Breast cancer |
Request
1. Does your Trust have a Standard Operating Procedure - also referred to as a PSFU Protocol - that covers the PSFU pathway for breast cancer?
|
Yes |
|
|
No |
|
|
Don’t Know |
|
If yes, please share your current, or most recent, version of this Standard Operating Procedure/PSFU Protocol.
2. Are all hospitals that form part of your Trust following the processes set out in the Standard Operating Procedure/PFSU Protocol for breast cancer?
|
Yes |
|
|
No |
|
|
Don’t Know |
|
If no, please send the breast cancer related Standard Operating Procedure/PSFU Protocol of each hospital in the Trust
Information provided about breast cancer signs and symptoms
This section relates to the information given to women about signs and symptoms of primary breast cancer and signs and symptoms of secondary breast cancer.
3. At the end of hospital-based treatment do you provide primary breast cancer patients with information about the signs and symptoms of primary breast cancer?
|
Yes - for all patients |
|
|
Yes – but not consistently |
|
|
No |
|
If yes- please provide a copy of the information provided or a link to the information if it is available online. If this information is part of a longer document please provide the full document.
4. At the end of hospital-based treatment, do you provide primary breast cancer patients with information about the signs and symptoms of secondary breast cancer?
|
Yes - for all patients |
|
|
Yes – but not consistently |
|
|
No |
|
If yes- please provide a copy of the information provided or a link to the information if it is available online. If this information is part of a longer document please provide the full document.
Number of patients
5. How many patients did you treat for primary breast cancer that finished their hospital-based treatment in each of the Financial Years 2022-23 and 2023- 2024?
|
|
Number of Patients |
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2022-2023 |
|
|
2023-2024 |
|
6. For each of the Financial Years 2022-23 and 2023-24, of the primary breast cancer patients that completed hospital-based treatment, please provide an estimate of what proportion were stratified to each follow up pathway?
a) A PIFU pathway
b) A Routine Follow Up pathway
If you can provide the figures spilt between the age under 45 category and age 45 and over category that would be useful but if the information is not readily available by age, please provide for all ages combined.
|
|
% of patients |
|||||
|
|
2022-2023 |
2023-24 |
||||
|
|
Under 45 |
45 and over |
All ages |
Under 45 |
45 and over |
All ages |
|
PIFU |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Routine Follow Up |
|
|
|
|
|
|
7. At the end of hospital-based treatment, is there a set period of time during which all patients in the Trust receive Routine Follow Up, with the decision between a Routine Follow Up pathway and a PIFU pathway being taken at a later date?
|
Yes- all patients receive routine follow up for a set period of time at the end of hospital- based treatment |
|
|
No- patients are immediately placed on Routine Follow Up or PIFU |
|
If yes, which hospitals offer this and for each hospital how long is the set period of time?
Description of the pathway
We are hoping to understand in more detail how the breast cancer PIFU pathway works and how people are able to make contact when they have a concern. If you are providing a Standard Operating Procedure/PFSU Protocol as part of your response, you only need to respond to questions 8, 9, 10 and 11 if the answers to these questions are not fully available in the document.
8. If a patient wants to raise a concern about a breast cancer sign or symptom (either primary breast cancer or secondary breast cancer) while on a PIFU pathway, what are the options for them to do so (please tick all that apply):
|
A telephone service |
|
|
Email contact |
|
|
Drop in clinics |
|
|
Other- please detail
|
|
Monitoring of the pathway
9. Are all breast cancer patients on a PIFU pathway logged and tracked on the organisation’s IT system?
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All are logged |
|
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All are logged and tracked |
|
|
Some are logged |
|
|
Some are logged and tracked |
|
|
No |
|
10. Is there a standard time limit on how long PSFU pathways are available to breast cancer patients e.g. 5 years?
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Yes |
|
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No |
|
If yes, what is the standard time limit?
If yes, how frequently is the standard time limit applied?
|
Always |
|
|
Most of the time |
|
|
Sometimes |
|
|
Rarely |
|
If any patients have a difference to the standard time limit, please detail and explain in what circumstances this occurs and the range of time limits?
11. When it is time for a breast cancer patient to be discharged from PSFU, do they receive any notification of this, e.g. by letter or phone call?
|
Yes |
|
|
No |
|
|
Don’t Know |
|
If yes, please explain how they receive this notification and provide a copy of the standardised information they would receive at that point, if it is in written form.
We are keen to discuss in more detail the answers to this FOI with a small number of Trusts. If this is something you would consider, please let us know and we will follow up if needed.
- Yes
- No
If yes, the person to contact is:
Response
1. Does your Trust have a Standard Operating Procedure - also referred to as a PSFU Protocol - that covers the PSFU pathway for breast cancer?
|
Yes |
x |
|
No |
|
|
Don’t Know |
|
If yes, please share your current, or most recent, version of this Standard Operating Procedure/PSFU Protocol.
2. Are all hospitals that form part of your Trust following the processes set out in the Standard Operating Procedure/PFSU Protocol for breast cancer?
|
Yes |
x |
|
No |
|
|
Don’t Know |
|
If no, please send the breast cancer related Standard Operating Procedure/PSFU Protocol of each hospital in the Trust
Information provided about breast cancer signs and symptoms
This section relates to the information given to women about signs and symptoms of primary breast cancer and signs and symptoms of secondary breast cancer.
3. At the end of hospital-based treatment do you provide primary breast cancer patients with information about the signs and symptoms of primary breast cancer?
|
Yes - for all patients |
x |
|
Yes – but not consistently |
|
|
No |
|
If yes- please provide a copy of the information provided or a link to the information if it is available online. If this information is part of a longer document please provide the full document.
4. At the end of hospital-based treatment, do you provide primary breast cancer patients with information about the signs and symptoms of secondary breast cancer?
|
Yes - for all patients |
x |
|
Yes – but not consistently |
|
|
No |
|
If yes- please provide a copy of the information provided or a link to the information if it is available online. If this information is part of a longer document please provide the full document.
Number of patients
5. How many patients did you treat for primary breast cancer that finished their hospital-based treatment in each of the Financial Years 2022-23 and 2023- 2024?
|
|
Number of Patients |
|
2022-2023 |
349. |
|
2023-2024 |
340. |
6. For each of the Financial Years 2022-23 and 2023-24, of the primary breast cancer patients that completed hospital-based treatment, please provide an estimate of what proportion were stratified to each follow up pathway?
a) A PIFU pathway
b) A Routine Follow Up pathway
If you can provide the figures spilt between the age under 45 category and age 45 and over category that would be useful but if the information is not readily available by age, please provide for all ages combined.
|
|
% of patients |
|||||
|
|
2022-2023 |
2023-24 |
||||
|
|
Under 45 |
45 and over |
All ages |
Under 45 |
45 and over |
All ages |
|
PIFU |
8.02% |
88.25% |
|
5.29% |
94.11% |
|
|
Routine Follow Up |
|
3.72% |
|
0.58% |
6.47% |
|
7. At the end of hospital-based treatment, is there a set period of time during which all patients in the Trust receive Routine Follow Up, with the decision between a Routine Follow Up pathway and a PIFU pathway being taken at a later date?
|
Yes- all patients receive routine follow up for a set period of time at the end of hospital- based treatment |
|
|
No- patients are immediately placed on Routine Follow Up or PIFU |
This is correct (post-op results appointment). |
If yes, which hospitals offer this and for each hospital how long is the set period of time?
Description of the pathway
We are hoping to understand in more detail how the breast cancer PIFU pathway works and how people are able to make contact when they have a concern. If you are providing a Standard Operating Procedure/PFSU Protocol as part of your response, you only need to respond to questions 8, 9, 10 and 11 if the answers to these questions are not fully available in the document.
8. If a patient wants to raise a concern about a breast cancer sign or symptom (either primary breast cancer or secondary breast cancer) while on a PIFU pathway, what are the options for them to do so (please tick all that apply):
|
A telephone service |
x |
|
Email contact |
x |
|
Drop in clinics |
|
|
Other- please detail
|
|
Monitoring of the pathway
9. Are all breast cancer patients on a PIFU pathway logged and tracked on the organisation’s IT system?
|
All are logged |
|
|
All are logged and tracked |
x |
|
Some are logged |
|
|
Some are logged and tracked |
|
|
No |
|
10. Is there a standard time limit on how long PSFU pathways are available to breast cancer patients e.g. 5 years?
|
Yes |
5 years unless the patient is diagnosed under the age of 45 and they have annual mammograms until age 50. Plus if patient is on a clinical trial, the follow up period is longer. |
|
No |
|
If yes, what is the standard time limit?
If yes, how frequently is the standard time limit applied?
|
Always |
|
|
Most of the time |
x |
|
Sometimes |
|
|
Rarely |
|
If any patients have a difference to the standard time limit, please detail and explain in what circumstances this occurs and the range of time limits?
11. When it is time for a breast cancer patient to be discharged from PSFU, do they receive any notification of this, e.g. by letter or phone call?
|
Yes |
Letter and phone call |
|
No |
|
|
Don’t Know |
|
If yes, please explain how they receive this notification and provide a copy of the standardised information they would receive at that point, if it is in written form.
We are keen to discuss in more detail the answers to this FOI with a small number of Trusts. If this is something you would consider, please let us know and we will follow up if needed.
- Yes
PLEASE SEE ATTACHED FILES
Requests for information must be made in writing. Telephone requests cannot be accepted. We accept requests in the form of:
- Letter
Send your request to:
Freedom of Information Requests
East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust
Information Governance
Corporate Offices Building
Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital
Haslingden Road
Blackburn
BB2 3HH
Or email: foi@elht.nhs.uk
You must include your full contact details, stating in what format you would like to receive the information.