Understanding the ethnicity profile of colorectal cancer and relation to stage and route of presentation

Project reference number – 0076

Principal investigators – Mr Mo Thoufeeq

Plain language summary - Bowel cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the UK.  A key focus of the NHS 10 year cancer plan, published in January 2019, is to reduce inequalities in cancer diagnosis and care. Inequalities in cancer care can be defined as differences between the cancer experiences of patients, which are the result of their gender, race, socio-economic status, disability, or geographical location.

The purpose of this work is to try to understand the ethnic background of the patients who have colorectal cancer in the Yorkshire and Humber region as compared to the rest of England to understand what inequalities currently exist in the region.  We also want to try to understand if there are differences in the routes by which patients from different ethnic backgrounds are diagnosed with colorectal cancer e.g. by screening, by urgent referral for suspected cancer, via emergencies or via routine referrals from their GP.  In addition, we also want to understand if there is a difference between different ethnicities in the stage of cancer they have when they are first diagnosed and if some groups are diagnosed with cancer that is more or less advanced. This is important as the way that a person is diagnosed and the stage they are diagnosed at has an impact on their survival outcomes. The findings from this work will help us to identify if there are practical steps that can be taken to improve the outcomes for certain ethnic groups who have poor results compared to other ethnicities.