Improving the diagnostic stage of the suspected colorectal cancer pathway: A quality improvement project.

We aimed to improve the lead-time and the patient experience of the diagnostic stage of the suspected colorectal cancer pathway. This project worked within the constraints of limited resources and an austere environment. The core team included a project manager trained in quality improvement methodologies. Senior and Fleming's planned change model was used as the overall framework. Baseline data supported the case for change and highlighted targets for improvement. A stakeholder workshop employed social movement theory, lean thinking, experience-based design and patient stories to engage influential leaders and secure support and commitment. Solutions that arose from the workshop were then researched. A "Genchi Genbutsu" ethos took the team to Northumbria to learn about another unit's pathway innovations. Subsequently, our new pathway employed solutions aimed at increasing the proportion of patients who went straight-to-test. Consensus on the design was achieved using Schein's process consultation theory. Implementation of the new pathway resulted in a significant reduction in the median time from referral to endoscopy from 26 days to 14 days (P<0.001), and a significant increase in the proportion going straight-to-test from 6% to 43%. Changes to improve patient experience were also implemented, however data to evidence this has not yet been collected. Going forward, further standardisation is required and issues around sustainability need to be tackled. This project exemplified, amongst others, the value of working from data from the beginning and a comprehensive early stakeholder engagement.

Perforated duodenal diverticulae: importance for the surgeon and gastroenterologist.

We present the case of a 78-year-old woman who was admitted for an elective left hemicolectomy for diverticular disease. Two days following the elective procedure, bilious fluid was noted in her pelvic drain. The patient returned to theatre, where a perforated duodenal diverticulum was excised and the defect primarily repaired. The patient then developed a low output enterocutaneous fistula which was treated conservatively with nasojejunal feeding and resolved spontaneously.

Acute small bowel obstruction due to chicken bone bezoar.

Acute intestinal obstruction due to foreign bodies, or bezoar, is a rare occurrence in an adult with a normal intestinal tract. We report an unusual case of a 43-year-old black man with no previous abdominal surgery and no significant medical history who presented with an acute episode of small bowel obstruction due to an impacted undigested chicken bone.

What proportion of patients referred to secondary care with iron deficiency anemia have colon cancer?

PURPOSE: Iron deficiency anemia can be the first presentation of right-sided colon cancer. There is an impression that because this presentation is nonspecific it may be associated with a longer delay from referral to diagnosis compared with those patients with symptoms of change in bowel habit and/or rectal bleeding caused by more distal colorectal cancer. This study was designed to determine the incidence of colon cancers in patients referred to the hospital with iron deficiency anemia and to determine what proportion of these patients were referred and diagnosed urgently in line with cancer waiting time targets. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed, including all patients referred to one district general hospital in 2003 whose blood indices met the criteria for significant iron deficiency anemia as defined by the Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer issued by the Department of Health in 1999, which defined iron deficiency anemia in the "target wait" criterion as a low hemoglobin (<11 g/dl in males and < 10 g/dl in postmenopausal females) with a mean corpuscular volume < 78 fl and/or a serum ferritin < 12 ng/ml. Patients with hemoglobinopathy were excluded. The underlying diagnosis reached for each patient was determined by using ICD10 C18-21. Case note review confirmed the diagnoses and yielded information on urgency of referral and time to diagnosis. RESULTS: Of 513 patients referred with iron deficiency anemia in 2003, 142 (28 percent) met the eligibility criteria. Nine (6.3 percent) of these had colon cancer, including one (1.2 percent) female and eight (14 percent) males. Eight of nine cancers were in the right colon. Other patients with iron deficiency anemia were found to have benign upper or lower gastrointestinal disease (n = 125) or upper gastrointestinal cancer (n = 1). In seven patients, no cause was found. Of the nine patients with iron deficiency anemia who were found to have colon cancer, five had been referred urgently and four as routine. The mean delay from referral to diagnosis for these was 31 days for those referred urgently but 60 days for those referred routinely. CONCLUSIONS: Males referred with iron deficiency anemia have a significant risk of having colon cancer. The risk seems lower in females; this gender difference has been observed in other studies and further evidence should be sought before advising any change in referral practice.