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CPD frameworks
These frameworks, associated with all articles, prompt drafting of personal learning, reflection and planning.
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Reflection on a journal article
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External reference on reflection
Reflective practice in health care and how to reflect effectively
Koshy K, Limb C et al. International Journal of Surgical Oncology. 2017 2:e20
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Gastroenterology
Articles are complemented with links to external websites. These enable instant access to the current evidence base. They include:
- Links to the results of pre-defined search requests made to PubMed
- Links to the results of pre-defined search requests made to 'NHS Evidence', the database of evidence provided by the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
- For articles related to lung cancer there are links to the US National Cancer Institute's database of peer-reviewed, regularly updated evidence-based summaries
Symposium articles on gastroenterology
|Early treatment can arrest or reverse cirrhosis
24 Jul 2020
Around 60,000 people in the UK are estimated to have cirrhosis. It is now the third most common cause of premature death. Decompensation represents a watershed moment for patients with cirrhosis, with the median survival falling from > 12 years for compensated cirrhosis to approximately two years. Patients with cirrhosis should undergo six-monthly ultrasound to screen for the early development of primary hepatocellular carcinoma. They should also undergo an initial upper gastrointestinal endoscopy to screen for varices.
|Tailor treatment to the patient with gallstone disease
24 Jul 2020
Gallstones affect around 15% of adults in the UK. Between 50 and 70% of patients with gallstones are asymptomatic at diagnosis and only 10-25% of these individuals will go on to develop symptomatic gallstone disease. The vast majority (90-95%) of gallstones are cholesterol stones. Obesity is associated with an increased risk of symptomatic gallstones. Patients with symptoms suggestive of gallstones should be offered liver function tests and an abdominal ultrasound.
|Early detection of liver cancer key to improving outcomes
07 Aug 2019
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) accounts for around 90% of liver cancer cases and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (CC) for 9-10%. Most cases of HCC occur in the context of chronic liver disease with cirrhosis, particularly in those with chronic hepatitis B or C. Other major risk factors include excessive alcohol consumption, obesity and aflatoxins. Overall, 10-15% of cirrhotic patients will develop HCC within 20 years. Patients presenting with an upper abdominal mass consistent with an enlarged liver should be referred for an urgent direct access ultrasound scan within two weeks.
|Optimising the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease
07 Aug 2019
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory condition which runs a relapsing and remitting course. Ulcerative colitis (UC) is more common than Crohn’s disease (CD). UC almost always affects the rectum and extends proximally and continuously to the colon to a variable extent. CD most commonly affects the terminal ileum or colon but can affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract from the mouth to the anus. The vast majority (90%) of people with UC report bloody stools compared with less than 50% of those with CD. CD is characterised by a triad of abdominal pain, diarrhoea and weight loss.
|Improving outcomes in pancreatic cancer
25 Jul 2018
The combination of an aggressive disease, vague presenting symptoms and insensitive standard diagnostic tests is a key factor contributing to poor outcomes with only 15% of patients with pancreatic cancer having operable disease at diagnosis. The NICE guideline on referral for suspected cancer recommends urgent referral via a suspected cancer pathway referral if the patient is aged 40 and over with jaundice. It also recommends that an urgent direct access computerised tomography (CT) scan referral should be considered in patients aged 60 and over with weight loss and any of the following: diarrhoea; back pain; abdominal pain; nausea; vomiting; constipation; new onset diabetes. Pancreatic cancer requires a CT scan for diagnosis.
|Diagnosing and managing colorectal cancer
25 Jul 2018
Colorectal cancer is the fourth most common cancer in the UK and is the second most common cause of cancer deaths. Most cancers are thought to develop from colonic adenomas and incidence is strongly related to age. The majority of cancers are left sided and typically present with a change in bowel habit, blood in the stool or colicky abdominal pain. Rectal cancers can present with fresh red bleeding and large tumours can cause tenesmus (the intense and frequent desire to defecate, with little or no stool passed). Right-sided cancers most often present with anaemia. In both right- and left-sided cancers occasionally the patient may notice an abdominal mass or inexplicable weight loss.
|Be vigilant for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in primary care
28 Jul 2017
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is now the most common cause of chronic liver disease in the Western world. Between 10 and 30% of NAFLD patients will develop non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) with a risk of progression to cirrhosis. Of those with NASH and fibrosis at presentation, studies have suggested that approximately 21% of patients will have some regression of fibrosis while 38% of patients will progress over five years’ follow-up.
