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Category: Project

Description: In the United Kingdom, bowel cancer is the fourth most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death. If caught early, there is a 90% chance of survival, but currently, less than 40% of bowel cancers are diagnosed at an early stage . There are also certain patient groups with genetic conditions such as Lynch syndrome, which increase the likelihood of them developing bowel cancer, and who require regular monitoring. Therefore, the development of a device for use in primary care, for people who need such close monitoring, for those who have an elevated FIT result, or for whom FIT is not an acceptable test, may help in the early detection of bowel cancer. It may also help to ease pressure on colonoscopy services by prioritising patients for further investigations. The proposed design of this new device will provide images of the bowel, which will be used alongside Artificial Intelligence to detect abnormal tissue or very subtle changes in the appearance of the surface of the bowel. The device will also be able to collect a sample of cells from the bowel, which can be examined for very early identification of pre-cancerous changes, blood and other established bio-markers. As with any new diagnostic pathway, patient acceptability is of great importance, as successful early diagnosis depends upon uptake of the test. Therefore, this study seeks to explore patient acceptability among patients with a genetic likelihood of developing bowel cancer requiring them to undergo regular invasive diagnostic tests, such as colonoscopy. The study will comprise two focus groups, where possible barriers and facilitators to using the device will be explored. People will be given the opportunity to view examples of similar devices and the procedure, and offer their feedback. This can be used to help inform the design of the device, as well as the upcoming clinical trial, which will test how effective the device is as a diagnostic tool.