The NHS redesigned its cancer guidelines to assist general practitioners in recognizing symptoms that could warn of one of 37 different cancers, as well as widening the scope of cancer testing.
"The best way to successfully treat cancer is to make an early diagnosis. The sooner the disease is identified, the more likely treatment is to be effective. Earlier diagnoses have the potential to save thousands of lives each year," Professor Mark Baker, a clinical practice director at NICE, said, as quoted by the NICE release.
The previous cancer guideline was published in 2005. The 2015 guideline uses a new approach of focusing on a patient’s symptoms, linking signs to possible cancers and including recommendations on what tests to perform.
According to the charity Cancer Research UK, more than 330,000 new cases of cancer were detected in the United Kingdom in 2011. Data for 2010-11 shows a 50-percent survival rate of 10 or more years for cancer suffers in England and Wales, according to the charity.
