Overview
HPP worked with Neuroendocrine Cancer UK, a leading patient organisation, to build a care pathway for neuroendocrine cancers from point of suspicion to follow-up care. The pathway was built into a comprehensive yet accessible report that highlights barriers to quality care and potential solutions to overcome them at every stage.
Catherine Bouvier-Ellis, former CEO, Neuroendocrine Cancer UK
The challenge
Neuroendocrine cancers (NENs) are the tenth most prevalent type of cancer in England. However, people face significant inequities throughout the care pathway – from suspected cancer to follow-up care. An added complexity is that these cancers can affect many organs and involve many different specialists, resulting in variations in the care delivered to patients.
Neuroendocrine Cancer UK (NCUK) contacted HPP to help them co-develop a comprehensive care pathway for people with NENs, brokering consensus among stakeholders from a wide range of disciplines and perspectives. The pathway was to serve as an essential pillar of their advocacy, calling for improved care.
What we achieved
- We worked closely with Neuroendocrine Cancer UK and a multidisciplinary group of stakeholders to co-create the first national care pathway for neuroendocrine cancers in England, illustrating what optimal care should look like and how to overcome the barriers to achieving it.
- The report was endorsed by 15 individuals and organisations.
- We also developed a peer‐reviewed article based on the pathway, which was published in the Journal of Neuroendocrinology.
- The pathway was launched at an event at the UK Parliament, which was jointly organised by NCUK and HPP in June 2023. It led to 11 MPs writing to their local commissioning board to encourage the integration of the care pathway.
- Since the event, NCUK has led a sustained campaign to accelerate the uptake of the care pathway and help standardise and improve care for people with neuroendocrine cancers. Several organisations have lent their endorsement to the campaign on the NCUK website.
Core resources
Policy report
Neuroendocrine cancer: an ideal patient care pathwayProject information
This project was initiated and funded by Neuroendocrine Cancers UK. For more information, please see the project page.
Get in touch
If you want to find out more about our work on NENs, contact Lucy Morgan, Director of Consulting.
