New Pharmacist Practice Guidance For Early Lung Cancer Detection, UK

Main Category: Pharmacy / Pharmacist
Also Included In: Lung Cancer;  Cancer / Oncology
Article Date: 07 Nov 2007 - 4:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

New guidance on best practice to support the pharmacist's role in the fight against lung cancer has been launched this week by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain's (RPSGB) Practice Division in conjunction with The Pharmaceutical Journal. ''Practice Guidance: Lung Cancer'' is available at http://www.pjonline.com to coincide with a special article in The Pharmaceutical Journal on 03 November.

The practice guidance has been produced as part of Lung Cancer Awareness Month (November), which includes activity organised by a multi-disciplinary working group based at the Department of Health (DH), involving leading lung cancer experts, senior NHS and DH professionals, charities and healthcare companies and organisations, including the RPSGB.

A key message of the campaign is that early detection and diagnosis of lung cancer can save lives and pharmacy has been positioned as a front-runner in early intervention. The new practice guidance urges pharmacists to:

- Be alert to possible lung cancer symptoms, such as the worsening of a longstanding cough, especially in high risk patients

- Increase public awareness of the signs and symptoms of lung cancer and the importance of early detection

- Take all opportunities to offer advice on smoking cessation

Paul Gimson, Lead Pharmacist for Long Term Conditions at the RPSGB, comments: ''With lung cancer, early detection leading to a swift diagnosis is vital to improve chances of patient survival and save lives.

''Patients will often share worrying symptoms with a pharmacist and the role of community pharmacists in raising awareness of particular health issues is becoming more widely recognised.''

Mr Gimson says that the guidance aims to help pharmacists to be extra vigilant in detecting early signs and symptoms of lung cancer, offer advice and refer people to a GP when appropriate: ''This work further highlights the valuable role that community pharmacy has to play in improving public health.'' Lung Cancer Awareness Month, now in its fifth year, was pioneered by Macmillan Cancer Support and the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation.

Although overall incidence rates of lung cancer in the UK fell by 16% between 1995 and 2004, lung cancer remains the most common cause of death from cancer in the UK, with some 38,000 new cases diagnosed each year.

Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain