Question reference: S5W-15036
- Asked by: Ben Macpherson, MSP for Edinburgh Northern and Leith, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 5 March 2018
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Current status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 March 2018
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that all patients diagnosed with bowel cancer are tested for Lynch syndrome, in light of evidence suggesting that the condition can dramatically increase a person’s chance of developing bowel cancer by up to 80%.
Answer
It is current protocol for all NHS Scotland Health Boards to ensure appropriate referral and testing for Lynch syndrome, for all patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer before the age of 60.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) have recommended extending referral and testing for Lynch syndrome to all patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer. The impacts of this recommendation are currently being reviewed by NHS Scotland’s Molecular Pathology Consortium (MPC).