Bowel screening update – August 2019

NHS England have provided an information sheet to explain the introduction of the faecal immunochemical test (FIT). This replaced the guaiac faecal occult blood test (gFOBt) at the start of June.

The main benefit of the FIT is that it is easier to use; only one sample is required compared to gFOBt, which required three different ones. FIT is also more sensitive than gFOBt and therefore able to detect signs of cancer earlier.

The FIT briefing can be downloaded here.

In addition to FIT testing, one-off bowel scope screening is currently being rolled-out for 55-year-olds in London.

Programme managers for each screening centre will be able to provide more detail and up-to-date information on how far their respective scope screening roll-outs have progressed. Bowel screening centre contacts are as follows:

North East London

City and Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest

Saema Rangrez

s.rangrez@nhs.net

0208 510 5311

North Central London

Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington

Tom Smith

Tom.Smith@uclh.nhs.uk

0203 447 5521

BHR

Redbridge (+ Havering and Barking and Dagenham)

Lynn Neeves

Lynn.neeves@nhs.net

01708 435000 x 4718

North West London

Brent, Ealing, Harrow and Hillingdon

Sarah Marshall

sarahmarshall5@nhs.net

0208 869 2643 / 3543

West London

Ealing, Hounslow, Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea

Belinda Johnston

belinda.johnston@imperial.nhs.uk

0203 313 8996 ext: 38996

King's

Lambeth and Southwark

Shonette Charles-Nurse

Shonette.charles-nurse@nhs.net

0203 299 7602

South East London

Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich and Lewisham

Tania Watson

tania.watson@nhs.net

0208 333 3000 (ext. 3106)

South West London

Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth (+ Croydon, Kingston and Richmond)

Saidah Labadie

saidah.labadie@stgeorges.nhs.uk

0208 725 0483

Last updated : 21 Aug 2019

Tips of the month October 2019 (22 Oct 2019)

We provide weekly tips based on common queries which come through to us from London GPs and practice teams. These are shared via social media and collated for...

Digital-first update - October 2019 (22 Oct 2019)

At the end of September NHS England’s board agreed proposals put forward following its most recent digital-first consultation. The NHS England board paper on digital-first recommendations can be viewed...

BMA PCSE surveys closing 25 October (21 Oct 2019)

The BMA surveys of GP practices and of GPs are closing on Friday 25 October. They are designed to collect information on the problems encountered with Primary Care Support England, the...

The revised Notification of Deaths Regulations (2019) (21 Oct 2019)

The Notification of Deaths Regulations (2019) came into force on 1 October 2019, a link to the associated Statutory Instrument can be found here and the Ministry of Justice’s...

Preparing for Brexit with MidMeds (14 Oct 2019)

With growing uncertainty about the impacts of Brexit on London general practice, we know that some practices are thinking about stockpiling essential supplies. The Londonwide Buying Group's recommended medical supplies...

Buying Group newsletter - October 2019 (14 Oct 2019)

Initial training for cervical sample takers - book your place now (04 Oct 2019)

Initial...

Tips for covering sexual health in consultations (18 Sep 2019)

Kirsty Armstrong is an Advanced Nurse Practitioner in Out of Hours, Primary and Urgent Care and a Lecturer in Primary and Urgent Care, along with leading our Sexual Health Update...

Becoming more dementia friendly for World Alzheimer’s Day (18 Sep 2019)

21 September is World Alzheimer’s Day, when individuals and organisations are encouraged to take steps to become more dementia friendly in their day-to-day lives. The more people understand about dementia,...