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The West Midlands breast cancer screening status algorithm - methodology and use as an audit tool
Gill Lawrence1, Olive Kearins, Emma O'Sullivan
1Breast Screening QA Reference Centre, West Midlands Cancer Intelligence Unit, Public Health Building, The University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK.
Objectives:
To illustrate the ability of the West Midlands breast screening status algorithm to assign a screening status to women with malignant breast cancer, and its uses as a quality assurance and audit tool.
Methods:
Breast cancers diagnosed between the introduction of the National Health Service [NHS] Breast Screening Programme and 31 March 2001 were obtained from the West Midlands Cancer Intelligence Unit (WMCIU). Screen-detected tumours were identified via breast screening units, and the remaining cancers were assigned to one of eight screening status categories. Multiple primaries and recurrences were excluded.
Results:
A screening status was assigned to 14,680 women (96% of the cohort examined), 110 cancers were not registered at the WMCIU and the cohort included 120 screen-detected recurrences.
Conclusions:
The West Midlands breast screening status algorithm is a robust simple tool which can be used to derive data to evaluate the efficacy and impact of the NHS Breast Screening Programme.