Doctors should check all over-60s with stomach pains for cancer as tests miss vital clues, scientists say

ALL over-60s who go to the GP with stomach pain or bloating should get checked for cancer, say scientists.

A University College London study found just one of those symptoms puts older patients above the NHS risk threshold for tests.

They had about a 3.1 per cent chance of cancer – one case per 32 patients – even without other signs.

Currently patients are only referred if they have another warning symptom as well as gut troubles, pushing their risk to three per cent or higher.

Researchers reckon routine blood tests given to people with stomach problems are missing tumour clues and delaying people’s diagnosis.

They found that red flags are not always detected or looked into by doctors.

If all abnormalities from the 19 most common tests were investigated, they estimate the cancer rate would be 46 per 1,000 patients instead of 40 per 1,000.

Half of people with cancer will go to the doctor with vague symptoms that can be challenging to diagnose

Dr Meena RafiqUniversity College London

It could amount to thousands more patients being diagnosed early each year.

Study author Dr Meena Rafiq said: “Half of all people with undetected cancer will first go to the doctor with vague symptoms that can be challenging to diagnose. 

“Many of these patients are investigated with commonly used blood tests that could help to identify who is most likely to have underlying cancer and should be prioritised for referral.

“It may be challenging for GPs to interpret a range of blood test data so our study points to the need for an automated tool to assess cancer risk.”

The study, in the journal PLOS Medicine, used data from more than 400,000 GP patients over the age of 30 in the UK.

They had all visited the doctor between 2007 and 2016 for help with stomach pain or bloating, and two thirds were sent for blood tests.

On average 2.2 per cent – one in 45 – were diagnosed with cancer within a year, and the rate increased with age.

It found that an abnormality in one of 19 common blood tests raised the risk of an eventual cancer diagnosis by 16 per cent, but many were not checked for tumours.

Dr Rafiq added: “This suggests we can improve cancer detection with blood tests that are already available.”