Early-stage colorectal cancer (CRC) patients are recommended to get a review every 3-6 months for 5 years after operation for the detection of cancer recurrence. As an increasing number of CRC patients require review post-operation, a greater burden may be placed on specialist clinics. With the availability of standardised surveillance protocols and low risk of cancer recurrence, the transfer of post-operative review to the community and primary healthcare settings might serve to reduce the burden on specialist clinics. This study led by A/Prof. Tan Ker-Kan, investigated the perception of CRC patients towards shifting post-operative care to the community and primary healthcare setting. Overall, the authors found that patients were reluctant to be reviewed outside of the specialist clinics and that more needs to be done to encourage patient acceptance of cancer surveillance care in community and primary care institutions.

Read more: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36401216/