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New strategy to boost NHS access to innovative medical technology

Patients across the UK are set to benefit from access to safe, effective and innovative equipment and medical devices as part of the first ever medical technology (medtech) strategy published today.

The blueprint for boosting NHS medtech will focus on accelerating access to innovative technologies, such as the latest generation of home dialysis machines that enable patients to manage their own health at home and in their day to day lives.

It also sets out steps which need to be taken to ensure patients can access safe, effective and innovative technology through the NHS, which can help diagnose, treat and deliver care more quickly, freeing up clinician time. The NHS spends £10 billion a year on medtech including syringes, wheelchairs,

Minister of State for Health Will Quince said:

"The UK’s innovative spirit delivered revolutionary technology during the pandemic - from COVID tests and ventilators - and we want to harness this in promoting cutting-edge medical advancements to improve patient care.

The NHS spends around £10 billion a year on medical technology and I’m looking forward to working with industry to use this as we focus on reducing hospital stays, enhancing diagnosis, preventing illness and freeing up staff time.

This new medtech strategy will help build a sustainable NHS with patients at the centre so people can continue to access the right care at the right time."

The key aims of the strategy are to:

  • boost the supply of the best equipment to deliver greater resilience to health care challenges, such as pandemics, and enhance NHS performance through modernised technology which will enable faster diagnosis, treatment and ultimately discharge to free up hospital beds.
  • encourage ambitious, innovative research to secure the UK’s position as a global science superpower and attract vital investment for the UK economy and create jobs across the country. In 2021, there were already around 60 different research programmes supporting innovative technologies, representing over £1 billion of funding.
  • increase understanding and awareness of medtech by clinicians which will lead to more informed purchasing on new products and deliver better value for taxpayer money and better services for patients.
  • build on the Life Sciences Vision to improve collaboration between the NHS, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as an innovation partner to ensure patients can access the right products safely.

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Source: DHSC, 3 February 2023

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New standard to make joined-up care a reality

The Professional Records Standard Body (PRSB) has published a new standard for shared care records that determines the vital information about a person that should be shared between health and care systems so care is safer, timely and more effective. Working with NHS England, the PRSB has asked citizens and health and care professionals to help produce a ‘core information standard’ that defines exactly what information should be shared in a person’s care record throughout their life. 

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Source: PRSB, 17 July 2019

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New sickle cell treatment given to first patients in England

Sickle cell patients have begun receiving the first new treatment for the blood disorder in over 20 years.

The inherited condition can cause severe pain and organ failure, often requiring hospital admissions.

Crizanlizumab is given as a monthly infusion and is thought to cut visits to A&E by 40%. Loury Mooruth, 62, received the treatment at Birmingham City Hospital, having suffered repeated periods of intense pain for decades.

During a crisis, patients often need powerful opioid painkillers but Loury, like many others, has faced suspicion when at A&E.

"You know the protocol when you go in, which needles and so on. They think straight away you are a drug addict - they don't believe you," she says.

She has refused to go to hospital during a crisis for the past two years because of her negative experiences.

A report from MPs last year found "serious failings" in sickle cell care with some evidence of discrimination against patients.

Dr Shivan Pancham, a consultant haematologist at Birmingham City Hospital, told the BBC: "Our patients often find the experience in emergency departments challenging with a lack of understanding of the severity of pain.

"It is hoped with these new therapies if we reduce the likelihood of attending emergency departments, ultimately this will be much better for the patients."

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Source: BBC News, 24 February 2022

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New safety warnings on risk of insulin leakage from Roche Accu-Chek Insight Insulin pumps

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has issued a national patient safety alert for the NovoRapid PumpCart prefilled insulin cartridge and the Roche Accu-Chek Insight Insulin pump system following concerns raised about cracked cartridges and insulin leaks.

Patients are being asked to check the pre-filled glass insulin cartridge for cracks prior to use. The cartridge should not be used if it has been dropped even if no cracks are visible. Closely follow the updated handling instructions in the pump user manual when changing pre-filled glass insulin cartridges.

The device, which releases the insulin your body needs through the day and night, comprises a pump, tube, battery and a pre-filled glass insulin cartridge. In some of the reported leakage incidents, the cartridges were found to be cracked and provided an inadequate supply of insulin to patients. However, leakages also occurred in cases where no cracks in the cartridge were visible. In some patients there were consequences of not receiving enough insulin from their pump system, including reports of severely high blood sugar and diabetic ketoacidosis (a serious complication of diabetes when the body produces high levels of blood acids called ketones).

Health care professionals are being advised to contact patients over the next six months using said device to discuss their individual needs and source an alternative pump where appropriate.

Key patient recommendations are:

  • Check the pump and cartridge regularly for damages, for example cracks or leakage. If you smell insulin (a strong antiseptic chemical smell) this could also indicate a leakage.
  • Do not use the cartridge if cracks or leakage are seen or if the cartridge was dropped. Follow the instructions of your Accu-Chek Insight user manual for replacing a cartridge and for cleaning the cartridge compartment in the insulin pump.
  • During the day and before going to sleep please carefully check that your insulin pump is delivering insulin and there are no leakages.
  • Never change treatment delivery methods without first consulting a relevant healthcare professional.
  • Failure of insulin delivery due to leakage may not result in an alert notification from the insulin pump and cracks and leakages may not always be visible. You should check blood glucose levels multiple times throughout your day whilst using pumps.
  • Tell your healthcare professional immediately if you suspect a problem with your insulin delivery.

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Source: Gov.UK, 26 May 2022

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New rules will discourage trusts from consuming more than their ‘fair share of NHS resources’

NHS England has launched the first substantive consultation on changes to the NHS provider licence since 2013. 

Licences set out the requirements providers must meet and are the legal mechanism NHS England can use to take enforcement action. Having a licence has long been mandatory for foundation trusts and independent providers, and will become so for trusts. The intention is for the proposals to take effect from next year.  

Most of the changes to the licence regime have been made to bring it into line with this year’s Health and Care Act and accompanying policy changes. For example, trusts will be required to collaborate with other providers and work effectively as part of their integrated care system. 

This extends to trusts delivering agreed financial plans decided at a system level. The aim is to provide “mutual accountability” and ensure each provider does not use “more than their fair share of NHS resources”.'

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Source: HSJ, 28 October 2022

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New rule to stop NHS directors ‘revolving door’

New rules will mandate trusts to supply references when NHS directors are given a new job, in a bid to stop the so-called “revolving door” for those who have failed.

Officials at the Department of Health and Social Care are working on the proposal, originally made by Tom Kark QC in his report to the department, published in February, on the fit and proper person test regulations.

Speaking at Patient Safety Learning's Annual Conference in London yesterday, Mr Kark, said he had been informed earlier this week that government had now accepted his recommendation for mandatory references.

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Source: HSJ 2 September 2019

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New RPS project investigates medicines shortages

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) is leading a new project to examine the causes of the growing challenge of medicines shortages and help tackle their impact on patients and pharmacy practice.

A new advisory group, convened by RPS and chaired by RPS Fellow Dr Bruce Warner, will meet later this month and bring together experts from primary and secondary care, patients, the pharmaceutical industry, suppliers, regulators, government and the NHS.

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Source: The Royal Pharmaceutical Society, 13 March 2024

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New risk calculator can help prevent heart attacks and strokes in people with type 2 diabetes

A new risk calculator will help to identify people with type 2 diabetes who are at high risk of developing heart and circulatory diseases with greater accuracy than ever before.

By spotting high-risk individuals years in advance, doctors will be able to offer vital preventative treatment that can help save lives by warding off future heart attacks and strokes. 

The risk calculator is included in the new European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Guidelines advising doctors on the management of cardiovascular disease in people with type 2 diabetes, which were announced at the ESC’s annual Congress in August.
 
There are around 4.5 million people in the UK with type 2 diabetes, and one third of adults with diabetes die from a heart or circulatory disease.

The SCORE2-Diabetes risk calculator, published in the European Heart Journal, will allow doctors to estimate the risk of developing a heart or circulatory disease in the next 10 years, with much improved accuracy. 

Professor Sir Nilesh Samani, our Medical Director, said: “People with diabetes are overall nearly twice as likely to die of heart disease or stroke as those who do not have the condition.

"This increased risk can be substantially reduced by interventions such as blood pressure control and statins, but this requires more accurate identification of those at increased risk.  
 
“SCORE2-Diabetes is a valuable advance that will allow doctors to tailor pre-emptive treatments for individuals with type 2 diabetes based on their personal risk of heart and circulatory diseases.

"Such an approach is vital as clinicians in the UK and across Europe find new ways to reduce the high levels of ill health associated with diabetes.” 

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Source: British Heart Foundation, 26 November 2023

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New research hints at 4 factors that may increase chances of Long Covid

It is one of many mysteries about Long Covid: Who is more prone to developing it? Are some people more likely than others to experience physical, neurological or cognitive symptoms that can emerge, or linger for, months after their coronavirus infections have cleared?

Now, a team of researchers who followed more than 200 patients for two to three months after their Covid diagnoses report that they have identified biological factors that might help predict if a person will develop long Covid.

The study, published by the journal Cell, found four factors that could be identified early in a person’s coronavirus infection that appeared to correlate with increased risk of having lasting symptoms weeks later:

  1. The level of coronavirus RNA in the blood early in the infection, an indicator of viral load.
  2. The presence of certain autoantibodies — antibodies that mistakenly attack tissues in the body as they do in conditions like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.
  3. The reactivation of Epstein-Barr virus, a virus that infects most people, often when they are young, and then usually becomes dormant.
  4. Having Type 2 diabetes, although the researchers and other experts said that in studies involving larger numbers of patients, it might turn out that diabetes is only one of several medical conditions that increase the risk of Long Covid.

The researchers said they had found that there was an association between these factors and Long Covid whether the initial infection was serious or mild. They said that the findings might suggest ways to prevent or treat some cases of Long Covid, including the possibility of giving people antiviral medications soon after an infection has been diagnosed.

“I think this research stresses the importance of doing measurements early in the disease course to figure out how to treat patients, even if we don’t really know how we’re going to use all that information yet,” said Jim Heath, the principal investigator of the study.

However, the study authors and other experts cautioned that the findings were exploratory and would need to be verified by considerably more research.

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Source: The New York Times, 25 January 2022

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New research collaboration to improve patient safety

University College London Hospitals (UCLH) is to host to a new collaboration researching patient safety, after being awarded £3 million in funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research.

The NIHR Central London Patient Safety Research Collaboration (PSRC) aims to improve safety in Surgical, Perioperative, Acute and Critical care (SPACE) services, which treat more than 25 million NHS patients annually. Perioperative care is care given at and around the time of surgery.

Amongst the highest risk clinical settings are SPACE services because of the seriousness of the patients’ conditions and the complex nature of clinical decision making.

Further risks arise at the transitions of care between SPACE services and other parts of the health and social care system. 

The research team led by UCLH and UCL will develop and evaluate new treatments and care pathways for SPACE services.  This will include new interventions such as surgical and anaesthetic techniques, and new approaches to predicting and detecting patient deterioration. They will also help the NHS become safer for patients through the development of innovative approaches to organisational learning, and to how clinical evidence is generated. The PSRC’s learning academy will support the next generation of patient safety researchers through a comprehensive programme of funding, mentoring and peer support.

The team includes frontline clinicians, policy makers and world-leading academics across a range of scientific disciplines including social and data science, mechanical and software engineering. Patients and the public representing diverse backgrounds are key partners in the collaboration.

Professor Moonesinghe said: “We have a great multidisciplinary, multiprofessional team ready to deliver a truly innovative programme to improve patient safety in these high-risk clinical areas. As a uniquely rich research environment, UCLH and UCL are well placed to lead this work, and we are looking forward to collaborating with clinicians and patients across the country to ensure impact for the whole population which the NHS serves.”

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New research calls for better care for people who seek emergency help following self-harm

Research has found that people who go to A&E following self-harm receive varying quality of care and this has a significant impact on what they experience subsequently.

The study in BMJ Open, which was codesigned and co-authored with people who have lived experience of self-harm and mental health services, found negative experiences were common, and revealed stigmatising comments about injuries from some hospital staff. Some participants reported being refused medical care or an anaesthetic because they had harmed themselves. This had a direct impact on their risk of repeat self-harm and suicide risk, as well as their general mental health.

According to the research, the participants who received supportive assessments with healthcare staff reported feeling better, less suicidal and were less likely to repeat self- harm.

"This research highlights the importance of learning from the experiences of individuals to help improve care for people who have harmed themselves. We involved patients and carers throughout the entire process and this enabled us to gain a greater insight into what patients want after they present to hospital having harmed themselves", said Dr Leah Quinlivan.

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Source: University of Manchester, 25 May 2021

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New report reveals alarming shortage of country doctors

A new report reveals alarming shortage of country doctors. Just 15% of consultants take jobs in hospitals serving rural or coastal areas.

Hospitals in rural and coastal Britain are struggling to recruit senior medical staff, leaving many worryingly “under-doctored”, a major new report seen exclusively by the Observer reveals. Some hospitals in those areas appointed no consultants last year, raising fears that the NHS may become a two-tier service across the UK with care dependent on where people live.

Disclosure of the stark urban-rural split emerged in a census of consultant posts across the UK undertaken by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), whose president, Andrew Goddard, has warned that patients’ lives may be at risk because some hospitals do not have enough senior doctors.

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Source: The Guardian, 13 October 2019

 

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New report outlines ways to tackle inequalities exposed by pandemic

In a new report, Michael Marmot has found Greater Manchester had a 25% higher rate of death incidences from Covid-19 than anywhere else in England. 

A report commissioned by the Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership outlines several key recommendations such as increasing Greater Manchester's budget for prevention, increasing funding and support for training, identifying the minimum income needed for healthy living and investing in routine data collection. 

The report outlines that now is the time to take these recommendations as actions to address the inequality issues. 

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Source: BMJ, 30 June 2021

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New report gives voice to “devastated” NHS patients

Injured NHS patients have spoken out about the human cost of clinical negligence in a new report published as MPs examine how to cut the health service’s bill for causing harm.

The House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee is gathering evidence for its inquiry on NHS litigation reform.

“There is a fixation on the financial cost of clinical negligence, rather than on the human cost and the reasons why injured patients have to make a claim for compensation at all,” said Guy Forster of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) a not-for-profit group which campaigns on behalf of injured patients and their families.

“There are a lot of voices and opinions in any debate which concerns the NHS and patient safety, but they are almost never the voices and opinions of the patients. This is why APIL has commissioned The Value of Compensation report,” said Mr Forster.

Patients who took part in the research cite mounting debt; uncertainty about their future health; isolation; abandoned careers; relationship breakdowns; and loss of independence, as some of the many far-reaching side effects of injuries sustained through failures in care.

“Patients are devastated to have trusted the NHS with their health and then have to live with the pain and suffering of an injury which should have been avoided,” said Mr Forster. “This report provides new insight on how compensation can help rebuild their lives.”

“None of them relish having to make a claim for compensation. I cannot stress enough that the money is never, ever a ‘windfall’ for an injured patient,” he went on.

“It is obvious that full and fair compensation is critical for injured patients. It should go without saying that the cost of compensation would be cut if the harm were not caused in the first place. But it is critical that when things go wrong, injured people are cared for properly and have the chance to get back on track.”

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Source: APIL, 12 January 2022

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New report finds Covid-19 death rate 25% higher in Manchester

New research has found the death rate in Manchester was 25% higher than the rest of England during the pandemic. 

The report describes how Manchester is experiencing a number of avoidable health inequalities that needs to be addressed. 

The Mayor of Manchester has said people on lower incomes are less able to control their exposure to the virus and that more needs to be done to help communities hit hardest by the pandemic. 

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Source: BBC News, 29 June 20201

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New report demonstrates the importance of working with patients to reduce digital health inequalities

A recent report based on research and case studies of good practice in combatting digital health inequalities demonstrates the importance in working with patients who are digitally excluded.

The report, Putting patients first: championing good practice in combatting digital health inequalities, is the second report by the Patient Coalition for AI, Data and Digital Tech in Health. 

This report focuses on digital health inequalities and the impact that digital exclusion is having on health in the UK. It highlights different reasons for disparities in a person’s ability to access and use digital health technology and provides insights into the severity of the UK’s digital inequalities.

The Coalition report concludes recommending that the Government and NHS should:

  • Engage with those digitally excluded
  • Ensure patients have a choice
  • Ensure the language is appropriate for all audiences
  • Learn from good practice.

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Source: The Patients Association, 9 May 2022

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New regulatory office will support healthcare AI innovations

Science and technology secretary Peter Kyle has announced the launch of a regulatory office, which will support the healthcare sector to deploy AI innovations safely.

The Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO) aims to reduce the burden of red tape for businesses hoping to bring new products and services to the market, so they can reach the public faster and help boost the economy.

A press release, published by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) on 8 October 2024, says that the RIO will “support regulators to update regulation, speeding up approvals, and ensuring different regulatory bodies work together smoothly”.

It adds that the RIO will initially support four areas of technology: AI and digital in healthcare, connected and autonomous technology, engineering biology and space.

The RIO will work with the Department of Health and Social Care to help safely deploy AI innovations, such as AI training software for surgeons.

In a statement, Kyle, said: “From breakthroughs that could help doctors diagnose illnesses earlier to satellite navigation for more accurate weather forecasting and getting emergency supplies to where they are needed, quickly and effectively, RIO will make sure UK companies are at the forefront of the next generation of technologies.”

Applications are being welcomed for the RIO’s first chair, who DSIT says will be appointed to “lead the charge in backing business and safe innovation, and work with regulators and partners to shape a regulatory environment that is fit for the future”.

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Source: Digital Health, 8 October 2024

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New registry launched to tackle ‘Wild West’ IT market

Only around a fifth of ambient voice technology firms understood to be supplying the NHS have been included on a new national registry designed to beef up NHS England’s oversight of the market, described as the “Wild West”.

19 AVT firms have been listed on the new national registry launched today, but it is understood that over a hundred such firms operate in the competitive market.

The suppliers of the AI tools are the first to join the self-certified registry, which requires them to comply with multiple standards covering regulation, clinical safety, and data protection.

AVT software automatically transcribes conversations between patients and clinicians and generates structured medical notes, aiming to reduce the manual documentation burden on staff and free up more time for patient care.

To be listed, suppliers must demonstrate compliance with the Digital Technology Assessment Criteria, hold Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency Class I registration, and provide evidence of post-market surveillance.

Additional requirements include evidence of benefit in the NHS, the ability to integrate with existing NHS digital infrastructure and scalability across organisations of different sizes.

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Source: HSJ, 15 January 2026

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New rapid coronavirus test dramatically reduces hospital stay time

A new rapid coronavirus testing device has been shown to reduce the average stay for patients on a COVID-19 holding ward at a UK hospital by almost half.

The Samba II portable machines can diagnose the virus in less than 90 minutes and have been trialled at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.

The average length of stay for patients on a coronavirus holding ward, before they were either discharged or could progress with treatment, fell from 58.5 hours to 30 hours, according to the Cambridge University study.

Researchers said the devices “could make all the difference” in freeing up hospital capacity as the NHS faces a mounting backlog of operations due to the pandemic.

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Source: The Independent, 3 June 2020

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New push to stop sending patients ‘out of area’ after homicides

NHS England has told trust, system and regional leaders to push ahead with plans to eliminate out-of-area placements within three years, in response to an independent review into the care of a man who killed three people while being treated by a Nottinghamshire mental health trust.

NHSE’s mental health leaders wrote to trusts and systems last night after publication of the findings on Valdo Calocane’s treatment.

The review said that he was sent to two inpatient units outside his home area, including a spot-purchased independent sector bed, “due to a lack of local capacity” and despite his family being against it. The review suggested that if he was cared for locally, the admissions “may have been the opportunity to fully see” that he was disengaging with community services, and for services to change their approach.

Claire Murdoch, NHSE’s national director for mental health, learning disabilities and autism, and Adrian James, the national medical director for mental health and neurodiversity, told trust and ICB leaders they must discuss their “action plans” to improve treatment of mental health patients who need “intensive and assertive community treatment” by 30 June.

In particular, they said they should review their plans for “eliminating out-of-area placements in line with ICB three-year plans”; for “personalised assessment of risk across community and inpatient teams”; “joint discharge planning arrangements involving family”; multi-agency working; and information sharing.

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Source: HSJ, 6 February 2025

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New prostate cancer screening trial could save thousands of lives

A new trial to gather evidence on screening methods to detect prostate cancer is set to be led by researchers at Imperial College London, working alongside UCL, Queen Mary University of London and the Institute of Cancer Research.

The £42million TRANSFORM screening trial, backed by charity Prostate Cancer UK, aims to find the best way to screen for prostate cancer and double the number of lives it could save.

Previous trials using PSA blood tests and biopsies have shown that it is possible to prevent between 8% and 20% of prostate cancer deaths depending on how regularly patients are screened. But healthy people can potentially be harmed by this approach.

Currently, there are more than 12,000 prostate cancer deaths in the UK alone, and this could mean thousands of lives saved each year in the UK.

TRANSFORM will bring together leading prostate cancer researchers to test new approaches that have the potential to more than double the impact of screening, and ultimately reduce prostate cancer deaths by up to 40%.

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Source: Imperial College, 1 May 2024

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New PPE allows us to perform surgery on deaf children

With so many operations put on hold when the pandemic started in March, surgeon Douglas Hartley and a team of medical veterans got to work pioneering new types of protective equipment.

When the coronavirus pandemic first hit the UK, thousands of surgical procedures were put on hold. For surgeons like Douglas, who performs operations on deaf children to restore their hearing, this created a significant moral dilemma – he wanted to get back into surgery to provide this vital care, but didn’t want to inadvertently catch or pass on COVID-19 in the process.

Douglas regularly carries out cochlear implant surgery, a process in which a surgeon embeds an electronic device which stimulates the hearing nerve in the ear. The scientific evidence is clear that this surgery needs to be performed at the earliest opportunity so that these children can benefit from being able to hear at a vital stage in their development.

But performing the surgery as normal would have put both children and surgical teams in danger. They needed to come up with another way of doing things. The team in Nottingham had to combine creativity and science to develop a novel and safe way to restart cochlear implant surgery in a matter of just a few weeks.

The team used a systematic evidence-based approach to evaluate a variety of PPE for its usability and effectiveness. During simulated cochlear implant surgery, they evaluated each type of PPE across several parameters, including its effect on a surgeon’s ability to communicate, their field of vision, and their comfort.

Many of the PPE options were found to substantially restrict the surgeon’s vision during operating. That rendered them unsafe for performing this sort of surgery. Instead, they found that the combination of “spoggles” and a half-face respirator mask had consistently superior performance across all aspects of clinical usability compared with all other options.

During their studies, Douglas and his team also worked with a surgical product manufacturer to develop a novel drape, basically a tent, that was designed to be suspended from a microscope covering the patient’s head and torso to provide a physical barrier between the site of drilling and the rest of the team.

They found that the operating tent significantly contained the droplets and prevented them from spreading around the theatre environment. They are the first – and are currently only – group in the world to develop an operating tent design that is marked for medical use. After completing our studies, we now had appropriate PPE and a protective operating tent to permit the safe restarting of cochlear implant surgery during the pandemic.

These recommendations were rapidly disseminated internationally via webinars and journal publications and quickly adopted as standard patient care by Nottingham University NHS Foundation Trust and, subsequently, embraced in other departments in the UK and across the world.

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Source: The Independent, 22 October 2020

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New policy brief calls on decision-makers to support patients as 1 in 10 report symptoms of “long COVID”

Some 1 in 10 people still experience persistent ill health 12 weeks after having COVID-19, termed “long COVID” or post-COVID conditions. A new policy brief from the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies documents responses to post-COVID conditions in different countries of the WHO European Region and looks at how sufferers, including medical professionals, are driving some of those responses.

Written for decision-makers, this brief summarises what is known about the conditions, who and how many people suffer from them, diagnosis and treatment, and how countries are addressing the issue.

Commenting on long COVID, WHO Regional Director for Europe Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge said, “COVID-19 has caused a great deal of suffering among people across the Region, with reports of long COVID an extra cause for concern. It’s important that patients reporting with symptoms of long COVID are included as part of the COVID-19 response to mitigate some of the longer-term health impacts of the pandemic. This policy brief makes clear the need for policy-makers to take the lead on this issue.”

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Source: WHO, 25 February 2021

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New pill can slow progression of incurable breast cancer

A new type of drug for one of the most common kinds of advanced breast cancer is now available on the NHS in England.

Some 3,000 women a year could benefit from capivasertib after a clinical trial showed it can slow progression of the disease, and shrink tumours in a quarter of people. In trials, in 708 women, when combined with hormone therapy, the drug doubled the time the cancer took to grow, from 3.6 months to 7.3 months. It also shrank tumours in 23% of patients.

The drug has been given the green light for NHS funding by England's drug assessment body. It's one of a range of treatment options available to people whose cancer has spread and is no longer curable.

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Source: BBC News, 11 April 2025

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New pharmacy referral service to help patients avoid hospital readmission

From July, hospitals will be able to refer patients who would benefit from extra guidance around new prescribed medicines to their community pharmacy. Patients will be digitally referred to their pharmacy after discharge from hospital.

The NHS Discharge Medicines Service will help patients get the maximum benefits from new medicines they’ve been prescribed by giving them the opportunity to ask questions to pharmacists and ensuring any concerns are identified as early as possible.

This is part of the Health Secretary’s ‘Pharmacy First’ approach to ease wider pressures on A&Es and general practice.

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Source: Department of Health and Social Care, 23 February 2020

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